


Second Chance

by tokicham



Category: D.Gray-man
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-19
Updated: 2017-04-24
Packaged: 2018-05-02 09:04:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 43,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5242559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tokicham/pseuds/tokicham
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His friends didn't know that he was already dead. What will he do if he continues to exist in a form he never wanted to be in? This is not his 50th name because it stopped at his 49th- Lavi</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Help! Aaaah.. Somebody please!..~" A girl is pleading for her life as she runs, the man is almost at her holding a knife in his hands. They are in a forest near the small town where the girl lives. She just wanted to visit her niece for she has had a fever for days. But she didn't expect to bump up into a serial killer on her way there. She heard rumors about girls being killed or tortured but the victims had always been tourists, and it happens far from their town. She just wanted to get out of this situation.

"Run! Haha. Run as fast as you can!.." The man encourages her, but it only causes her more panic hearing it from him, she can tell that he was enjoying the chase. Running out of air she stumbles and falls. The man is on her, and raises his hand with the knife with a smile on his face, imagining how he could make this murder special from the others.

"Stop!" Another voice says, reaching them. Nervous for being caught, the man stands and turns around trying to find where the voice came from.

"Show yourself!" Tightening his grip on the knife, he knows there's something wrong, he was pretty sure no one should be in the forest but himself, he had been hiding there for five days and there could be no possibilities that someone might get there even by chance. Preoccupied by his thoughts, he doesn't realize notice that his victim scrambles herself to safety.

Now he is alone, a gust of wind passes through the forest, the leaves from the trees falling around him. Then a small figure appears from the bushes in front of him. It's a child with reddish hair, wearing black trousers, a dark green vest, red neck tie and an unbuttoned coat. The boy seems like he's from a middle class family, and he is looking at the man straight from his blue eyes. The man almost laughs at the sight of the boy. He is just around ten years old, what can this boy do to him? Actually, he sees this as an opportunity; he hasn't tried to kill a boy before.

"Why hello there, kid." He gave his most assuring smile while slowly hiding the knife behind his back. It's dark so maybe the boy has not yet seen it. "Are you lost?" Getting closer to the boy, and measuring their distance.

The boy just stares with dead eyes, no emotion can be traced on his soft features. Reaching the boy, he knelt and put his left hand on the boy's shoulder, and then he quickly presses his knife to the boy's throat. The man wanted to hear him scream and cry, to see fear and hate from his victims. These are the pleasures he gets from his doings. But he gets nothing from the boy.

"Are you done?" the boy asked. With just few words the man felt the fear that he was expecting from the boy only that it came from himself. The skin on the right side of the boy's face melted revealing his flesh, strips of blood gushed and a shotgun muzzle appears out of his right eye, directing to the man's forehead.

"Die." The single shot rings through the forest, even the houses nearby might have heard it.

The boy turns back to his human features, the victim's blood sprayed all over his face and staining his clothes. His victim slowly disintegrates, the skin turning gray with black pentacles invading the body and in less than a minute, it turns to ash. The boy silently makes his way out of the forest, brushing himself with leaves and dirt to take off the blood stains. He smiles, showing the satisfaction of his work. He has been an Akuma for only three months and he is almost reaching Level 3, which is quite an achievement for him.

It's almost dawn when he reaches the orphanage where he lives. He has no problem sneaking off the place at night. He has studied each and everyone in the house - all their attitudes, mannerisms and habits - sometimes he can even predict their decisions. There are nine orphans including himself, all not exceeding twelve years of age. Four girls and five boys. Their guardian is Ms. Watson, an old widow. Strict at times but she is someone that purely understands the children.

Once inside the house, he quietly undresses and hides his soiled clothes, cleaning up while no one is around and tip toes across the room. He sees Darren snoring face down on the pillow, and smirks slightly at the thought of how lucky the boy was sleeping in that position; Darren has escaped his roommate's artistic hands. He won't be waking up with a perfectly groomed mustache on his face in the morning. Sliding into his bed he tries to sleep and fortunately he does.

The morning is at its due and the heat is building up in his room when someone enters.

"Lavi! Hey wake up" A girl with brown curly hair in a white dress says as she shakes the boy on the bed covered by a blanket. "Lavi!~" Irritation is flaunting from her voice, then the boy on the bed, Lavi, sits up lazily with his eyes still shut.

"Eliese, it's Sunday. I need more sleep."

Eliese pouts and crosses her arms. "I knew it! You had another expedition last night!" Lavi stiffens on what the girl said, Eliese has always been suspicious of him and most of her speculations are true.

"That ain't true! I'm just tired!"

"Really huh, well you should start fixing yourself because, everyone is ready going to church."

"Oh my! I forgot!" After a few minutes of haste and quick grooming, Lavi joins the children and goes to church with their headmistress Ms. Watson.


	2. Chapter 2

The town is bustling, all the people are busy doing something. The town's yearly festival is coming and everyone is looking forward to it. Many tourists are expected to come and most are already gathering in the market. But there are some who do not belong in the crowd, like the three black hooded figures investigating the town. They are quick on their feet and it levels with the fast paced activities of the people.

"It's a nice town." One of the hooded says as she observes the place. There is a smile on her face, but it quickly fades as if she can't have the right to be happy.

"Lenalee-san, are you alright?" The other hooded woman asks, pressing to the side of her friend, and sets a hand on Lenalee's shoulder.

"Yes, I'm fine." Another smile emerges on her features.

But Lenalee is not fine at all. They are at war. Most of her friends have died while some are still missing, but she can't even have time to mourn or worry for them. She has to keep moving forward, stay optimistic. All she can wish for is to stay by her friends, but what she can do for now is to believe in them. They are exorcists, the apostles of god, wielding Innocence as they fight demons and their creator, Millennium Earl. It's their destiny.

Lost in her thoughts as they turn in a small corner, a bunch of kids run towards them and she accidentally bumps into a boy, and they both fall in the ground.

"Ah-" The boy exclaims as he rubs his head. "That hurts!"

"I'm sorry!" Lenalee quickly runs to his aid. "Are you alri-" She lost the words, the moment she laid eyes on the boy. Red hair with an eye patch. It can't be! She thinks. The boy reflectes the same reaction as her. "Lav-"

"Lavi!" Lenalee is cut short by the girl coming towards them wearing a pirate hat.

"Eliese." Lavi quickly stands up and bows his head to Lenalee. "I-I'm sorry miss!" Turning to Eliese, he grabs her wrist. "Let's go!" whispers, walking pass the group of hooded people only to be stopped by one of them, tugging him by the arm and spinning him around to face a pale man with pointy ears, curiosity written all over his features.

"A-Are you really Lavi?" The man is almost crying, tears already building in his eyes.

"Old man, what's wrong with you?" Lavi pulls away, freeing himself from the man's grasp.

"Do you know these people, Lavi?" Eliese asks as she moves behind Lavi's back, surely the man is creepy.

"No, I don't." He states, then after a moment of silence. "Yes! My name is Lavi! Do you have a problem with it?" Lavi stares at them with furrowed brow.

"Crowley." The pointy eared exorcist turns when Lenalee taps him on the shoulder, her face void of all expression. "It's not him."

"But the eye patch!" The other woman, Miranda exclaims.

"Oh! This?" Lavi takes off the eye patch and plays with it between his fingers with a smile. "It's a part of my costume!" It is then the exorcists realize that this Lavi's eyes are actually blue, unlike the emerald green their friend has.

"We apologize for disturbing the both of you" Lenalee broke a smile towards them, Eliese returns it.

"Um… Exuse me, big sis, but what are you doing in our town?" Eliese cannot hold her curiosity. The lady interests her. She can see the silver lining of their red and black dress beneath their coats. And the hoods? It's not raining, are they perhaps hiding? But from whom? These are the things running in her little mind. Lavi had tried to stop her with a hiss but the words still came out of her mouth.

"Ahm…" Lenalee glances at her comrades. "W-we're just passing by. We are actually heading to the next town." She smiles kindly down at them, though it feels forced on her face. Sudden clicks of a machine sound and shots are fired. Lenalee is the first to react, getting the two children out of harm's way while Crowley deals with the Akuma attacking them.

"Die exorcist!" The man shoots his machine gun on the approaching exorcist. But Crowley is too fast for him. Before he knows it, the exorcist is on him, biting and crushing him.

Setting down Eliese and Lavi, Lenalee tells them to hide as she knows that there could be more of them. As she turns back to Crowley and Miranda, she see two more Akuma coming from behind, she needs to move quickly. With the power of her dark boots, she dances in the air and eliminate the two Akuma with just few kicks. When the explosions stop, Lenalee checks the children.

"Are you alright?" She crouches down beside them but Lavi turns and looks at her with anger.

"Eliese! She was hit!" Lavi is holding Eliese, blood steadily streaming from a large gash on her arm and she is getting paler by the moment. Debris from the fight had hit her and cut her deeply. Too deep. Lenalee firmly ties a strip of cloth she got from her bag around the wound but the bandage does little to stop the bleeding and she ties on several more.

"We need to get her treated!" Crowley quickly rushes over and gently takes Eliese from Lavi. She moans softly as he lifts her up and they all go to the nearest doctor they can find.


	3. Chapter 3

It's late afternoon and Eliese is quietly sleeping on her bed at the orphanage, her arm bandaged and her color returning to her face, Lavi is sitting across the bed. Ms. Watson thanked the Exorcists for their assistance and had offered them a stay for the night. Lavi never wished to be near any Exorcist, he is an Akuma after all, and he can feel their Innocence throbbing in its desire to destroy him. He let out a sigh as he stands and settles down by the window, looking out at the view outside. Three months have passed ever since he died. He remembers Lenalee's face when she first saw him earlier.

'They didn't even know that I died.'

He remembers the time when he was still an Exorcist with the Black Order; it was the only place where he could be himself. As a Bookman apprentice, he had never needed a heart; he could not feel for the people around him, for the sake of recording without bias. Like a gust of wind he should just pass by without feeling anything.

Long ago he had accepted those facts, he could easily kill his previous persona and move on to his next record, but his 49th was the most genuine, as an Exorcist fighting on the frontier, he unconsciously gained emotion through his comrades, he couldn't even tell if his smiles were fake or not. He couldn't even imagine leaving them, he had taken the toll of spending three years with the Order, and that is having a heart. Now it's different, those worries are pointless now, now that Bookman, his master, is dead, he is dead, and worst of all, he is an Akuma. Everything picks up to a different level.

He hears a faint knock on the door and turns to see Lenalee as she enters.

"Lavi, you may take a rest, I'll be watching her." Lenalee says as she sits on the bed beside Eliese.

"Nah. I'll stay." He replies, settling back in his seat. Lenalee is wearing her Exorcist uniform, a combination of black and dark red, a short skirt with a silver rose cross on her left chest. Her hair reaches her collar bone which is longer than what the redhead can remember.

"Miss Lena, I heard you earlier talking to Miss Watson. You said that you are an Exorcist, is that true?"

Lenalee freezes, not by the boldness of the boy's sudden question, but by what he called her. "Y-yes, we are, we fight demons just like those who attacked us earlier."

The boy turns to Eliese. "I want to fight them too!" Lavi says in almost a whisper.

Lenalee frowns, she is too curious about this boy, she moves toward him, kneeling by his side she asks, "Why?"

It's quite an obvious and stupid question. As an Exorcist, she is very well aware of the danger of fighting an Akuma. It involves pain, sacrifice and death, she should just turn down the hopes of this boy to fight one but she recognizes a great conviction in the boy's eyes.

"I think it's cool!" Lavi exclaims, his body full of excitement. "I can become a hero if I want to and have a pretty girlfriend by my side!"

Thinking of all the possibilities of his career as a hero, he fails to notice Lelalee's disappointment, her mood changing as she is no longer interested in the boy's petty reason of fighting demons.

"And maybe I should get a few sidekicks!" He shouts, grinning widely at Lenalee, but quickly turns pale when he feels the dark aura from Lenalee.

"Eh?~" That's all he can say.

"Forget it!" Pouting her lips, she walks out of the room.

"Wait! I'm just-" The door shuts with a bang. "… kidding."

In the room of the three Exorcists, Crowley has settled himself on a couch while Miranda is communicating with the Order through her golem, reporting their location and the cause of their delay getting to the next town. Miranda and Crowley just came from their previous mission about a supposed Innocence phenomena but it turned out bad. Then they were instructed to meet up with Lenalee to investigate about the Akuma activities. The room provided by the orphanage is small – though, not for children – it has one couch, a bed, cabinet and shelves. The door opens and Lenalee enters without warning, brows still crinkled.

"Something wrong? Lenalee-san?" Miranda asks.

"No, I just- nothing important." She sighs, giving her an assuring smile. "So? Did my brother give some details about our mission?" Changing the topic she sits on the bed with Miranda, both facing Crowley.

"Kumui-san said that numerous sightings of Akuma are claimed by the townspeople but no deaths are have been recorded. It is aberrant behavior for Akuma to stay in a place without leaving traces of their victims. Kumui-san also advised us to be cautious, for there might be a possibility that a Noah is involved in this." Miranda tells them with her usual tone of uncertainty, wondering if she is saying it right or not.

"Wait, if there are no records of death, then they might be getting victims from a nearby place." Crowley suggests.

"That can't be possible, as our Finder reported there are incidents of murder but he attested that those murders are made by human." Lenalee counters but it's followed by silence. "I think we should confirm it ourselves tomorrow." Ending the conversation, they all go to sleep, not knowing that a boy has been eavesdropping perfectly unnoticed. Lavi silently smirks and leaves like a ghost.


	4. Chapter 4

The gleam of dawn layers through the windows of Eliese's room, causing her to squint and wake up. Her room is still dark and sustained by the cold breeze of the night. She remembers what happened yesterday, the sudden explosions then something hit her, the pain and numbness, the worried look of her friend Lavi. She could also recall the time when the doctor was tending her left arm but that's the last of it. After a quick scan of her room she closes her eyes, quickly opening it again uncertain of what she had glimpsed on.

Focusing on the door of her room, she manages to make out the figure of a boy, and it makes a few steps to her. "Eliese."

"Lavi? Is that you?" She says rising from her bed. As Lavi motions to her, she saw the blankness of Lavi's face, it's way too different from his accustomed friendly smile and attitude.

"I'm just here to check on you. You alright?" The boy is wearing his formal suit but now he has his coat on.

"I guess?" Eliese then smiles as she hears her friend's familiar cheerful tone. "Good, then I'll be off." Smiling as he turns.

"Wait! Where are you going?"

"Home." He states without looking back. Eliese knows that that this is not like his normal night expeditions as how she refers to them.

"Are you coming back?" She asks in a low voice.

"I'm afraid I can't, I just want to say goodbye." He says still not facing Eliese that already standing two meters away from his back. Even at a young age, Eliese can understand why Lavi is leaving, he find the boy different from others and by saying different she means beyond different. She knows that the boy is a spawn of the devil, but she still considers him as her friend.

"Then just be careful." She says before adding. "and if ever you change your mind, you know where to find me." Lavi glances at her, catching the brightest smile she could muster, though Lavi can clearly distinguish the sadness she hardly tries to hide. And with that Lavi steps out of the room and bounds on a journey that long before he should have chosen.

Lenalee and the others depart the orphanage before the dawn breaks, leaving just a note to say their thanks. All their attention is focused on their mission. Reaching the town they start gathering information about anything unusual by questioning people and hearing rumors, they do not dismiss the probability that an Innocence was the reason why Akuma were sighted in the place. They do not dare to divide into groups, the number of Exorcists have greatly depleted and they cannot take the risk of losing one more. After a good three hours of investigating, they find a report of a recent attempted murder of a girl named Thea. She is claiming that she was attacked by the suspected killer of those previous murder incidents around the town, but escaped her death and was saved by a demon. This spikes the interest of the exorcists and they decide to get the full account of the story from the victim herself.

"I thought I was going to die at that point. But somebody stopped him from killing me. It sounded like a child's voice." Thea explains to the Exorcists around her. Her visitors are from the church and she can't just reject them. Besides, she wants to find out what saved her that night.

"A child? Then how did you come up describing it as a demon?" A frown is emitting from Lenalee's brows. Thea and the three Exorcists are huddled in a small sitting room at Thea's residence.

"Because it is!" The girl cries, her face falling into a grimace as she remembers that night. "I saw it kill that man! It was dark but... I remember hearing a gunshot as I ran from him. I looked back and I saw a monster, it had a deformed face... covered with blood… I was so afraid that I sprinted straight for the town." Fright is reflected on her eyes as she recalled the dreadful scene. "When I went back with the police, we just found nothing but a pile of ash with the clothes of my attacker."

"It's definitely an Akuma." Crowley concludes, resting his chin on his right hand. Beside him, Miranda nods in agreement.

Satisfied with what they have heard, they take off and go to a restaurant for lunch. They order a full course of meal for each because they didn't have time to have breakfast earlier, but the hunger doesn't stop them to deliberate about the facts at hand.

"Are you saying that Miss Thea was saved by an Akuma?" Lenalee says with skepticism in her tone as she set down her coffee mug and laces her fingers together, resting her chin on it.

"But that's how it seems to be, if it wanted to kill her in the first place then she should be dead by now." Miranda reasons while accordingly setting down the napkin on the table while Crowley is busy drinking slurping his milk shake.  
"If that's true, it just means that they are up to something. Something we haven't figured out."

They are sitting at a small round table in the inner corner of the dining area, congested with various people. Lenalee finds the town a bit dire, most of the people they have encountered were simple while some look extremely poor and do not display wealth. The structure of the buildings are damaged and not well maintained, it only indicates that the town itself is not properly managed, the suffering and struggle were all visible deep in the eyes of the townspeople.

"About the victims, the police officer said that the man Thea claim's was killed by an Akuma has no record in the town but a suspect for multiple murders. I think this is the reason why no deaths were filed in this particular town. All the victims might have been outsiders." Crowley mused.

"You have a point!" Lenalee cheered up for a moment and resumes sipping on her coffee.

"What are we gonna do next?" Miranda muttets after finishing her treats.

"How about going to the place where the Akuma was last seen, we may get some lead or something out there?"

"I guess you're righ- Oh?" Miranda startles, turning to the side as when she realizes that somebody other than her friends answered her question.

"Hello, Big Sis!" A grin spreads on the face looking at the dumbfounded Exorcists.

"YOU!" The three exclaim at the same time, rising from their seats and smacking their hands onto the table. The same table the boy was currently sitting at. They hadn't even seen him sit down!

"Yo!" Lavi raises his hand cheerfully from where he sits beside Miranda, his cheek blushing with excitement.


	5. Chapter 5

Lavi eagerly digs on his food, enjoying every taste that lands on his taste buds. He eats not because he needs it to live, but only for the sensation; it makes him feel more human. The three exorcists watch him as he devours his meal with questioning glare.

"What?" He says in between his munching.

Lenalee face-palms and sighs, she has an idea what is running through the boy's head but she wants to hear it from him. Rolling her eyes with sarcasm she says, "We're waiting for an explanation?"

"Oh?" He says acting like it's not important. "I followed you guys from the orphanage. And I skipped breakfast and halfway on my lunch. And by the way, thanks for treating me. I was really hungry!" The wide grin never left his face, he really is enjoying this. Miranda is starting to think that the boy is crazy with all the smiling he is giving.

"But why? Your Mistress should be worried by now; we need to take you back!" Miranda suggests.

"No! I'm not going back! I came here to help! You can't just turn me away!" he whined, pouting his lips.

Help? Lenalee thinks. Before she could say something, Crowley interjects. "How can a boy like you could help us?"

Sipping the last of his drink, Lavi leaned back in his chair, interlacing his fingers and rests it comfortably at the back of his head. "Those monsters that you slay, I can find them!" his blue eyes sparkling.

"I doubt it." Crowley grunts. "My Innocence can lead me to an Akuma even by instinct! How will you find them if you're not an accommodator. Unless you are cursed." Crowley disgruntles.

"Akuma? So that's what you call them!" Ignoring Crowley's analysis. "I can identify them, I've seen three of them in this town, and they are watching your moves."

The three cannot believe what the boy is saying; they exchange looks and huddle up together on one side of the table, Lavi left blinking at them. After a few whispers and shushed words they go back to their places.

"Ok, Lavi. We will give you a shot to prove yourself. But if you are lying we will take you back to the orphanage whether you like it or not!" Lenalee states with conviction. Lavi agrees to the proposal and then they head towards where the Akuma was last seen.

The exorcists are not convince with Lavi's claims, but if that is true it will be an advantage for the Order just like how Allen can detect Akuma within a certain range. What bothers Lenalee is the danger it may cause to it may bring to Lavi, he's just a boy if his ability proves to be true then the Order might use him, especially the Central. It's a different case from Timothy Hearst, even though he is only nine years old, at least he has Innocence to protect himself, but Lavi have nothing he will just be a good target for those Akuma.

They walk for about a mile to reach the edge of the town. Lavi is at the end of the line, as they walk at steady pace for the boy's convenience. Lavi felt a little bit guilty lying to his friends, but it's the only way for him to do his plan. First, he needs to get their trust.

"Lavi, stay close to us." Miranda says standing beside him, she looks worried and uncomfortable with Lavi around but she does her best to act normal. "It's dangerous you need to be close so we can protect you."

"Don't worry, Sis. I can handle myself." Lavi smiled at her. Miranda really finds him similar to their fellow Exorcist Lavi and it makes her very suspicious of the young boy.

"Uhm, Lavi. May I ask…" She starts, pursing her lips for asking such a personal question. "… What happened to your parents? That is if you don't mind telling me." Miranda says, while looking down on her feet a bit embarrass.

Lavi doesn't falter by the question as he had already prepared a good cover up story.

"My father died when I was four. I can't remember the details how, but my mother's death was the most painful. She suffered and grieved for my father for years and then one day she returned from work and she looked different." He states, his voice lower with each sentence as his gaze shifts closer to his feet. He puts on his best sorrowful expressions. "That's when I first realize that she was not my mother anymore, it was a monster." He paused for a moment his face scrunching up into a hard grimace and forcing his voice to crack. "Seeing those eyes, I knew she wanted to kill me! So I ran away. Ever since then I could pin point those creature from the crowd and learned to avoid them."

Miranda suppressed a sniffle, making Lavi to look at her. She was crying comically.

"Eh?" Lavi said in awe he didn't mean to make her cry. She's still too soft! He thinks. Guess she will never change.

"Sorry." She says as she manages to calm herself. "I just can't believe the hardship you've faced at a very young age."

"Well, that's what being alive is!" He says aloud though he intended to keep it to himself. Miranda did not question the vagueness of what he said.

When they arrive to the forest where the victim was found, the team scatters to find any leads to unveil the mystery on why Akuma are gathering in the town.

"Guys, come here!" Crowley says kneeling on the ground gently touching the ground with his finger tips he had found faded black pentacles printed into the earth. Everybody leaned to look and confirmed what it was.

"An Akuma virus! The earth must have absorbed it from the victim!" Lenalee deduces.

Lavi suddenly flinches; he can feel them coming. The three Exorcists are alarmed by his reaction.

"What is it kid?" Crowley asks.

"They're coming." An expression of disgust was trailed to his features. He looks towards the town's direction. "Three from the town and-" He turns his head around to the forest. "Five more are coming from the forest!"

All of the exorcists intensify their guards. It is better to trust the boy and prepare for battle than to be caught up unarmed.

Three men appear in the same spot the exorcists were just minutes ago and they seem to be searching for someone. Lavi watches them as he and Miranda hide a few meters away while Lenalee and Crowley sneak behind the group of men. Lenalee purposely lets herself be seen to confirm if they are indeed Akumas. As soon as they spot her, the three transform into their true forms.

"Exorcist!" They hiss, attacking her with purple bullets. Activating her dark boots, Lenalee flawlessly dodges and glides in the air and kicks one of them followed by it's explosion.

"Just Level 1's, huh?" She says as she lands another attack on the second one while Crowley bites the third, injecting his blood through his fangs poisoning it. Innocence was indeed a wonderful anti-akuma weapon.

Lavi and Miranda hear a rustle behind them followed by a shriek, both of their heads spin in surprise. They're facing a level 2 Akuma.

"Now, look what we got here~?" It says with a mechanical voice. The eyes of the Akuma are full of blood lust; its tongue slithers out as it glares at them. Miranda freezes with fear. Lavi knows that the lady Exorcist is not an offensive type of soldier, and the appearance of the Akuma is making it worst. It's head and arms look like a mechanical cat while its body is made of a giant Centipede.

"Miranda! Lavi!" Lenalee calls when she sees the other four Level 2's hovering around the area. She leaps towards Miranda but is cut short by two Akuma. She stops in midair and attacks them. Fighting against a Level 2 is not as easy as a Level 1, because they have gained consciousness and have special abilities. Sure, Lenalee and Crowley can defeat them, but it will take time. Lenalee grimaces at the thought of being stuck in the battle while Crowley is being cornered by two more. If she wants to help her friends, she has to deal with them fast.


	6. Chapter 6

An impact on the ground resounds in the forest leaving clouds of dust.

"Eeeek!" Miranda screams with fear and disgust as the Akuma nearly hit them with its body. Lavi has to push them both out of the way to dodge its attack. Releasing Miranda from his grip, Lavi turns to the Akuma.

"Hey! Stupid monster!"

The Akuma meets Lavi's eyes. "How dare you to insult me, you little brat!" it shouts with anger.

Oh! A short tempered Akuma? Lavi thinks, remembering a certain friend with such tone and temper, Kanda Yu. Lavi smirks in his mind.

"Why? Are you hurt?" Lavi teases in a singsong voice. "Pretty weak, for someone with such a large body like that!" He says while tilting his head to the side then sticks out his tongue to annoy the demon. The Akuma grinds his teeth out of rage.

"I'll skin you to death!" It screeches as it hurls itself towards Lavi, who has already started running a few paces away from the Akuma.

"Lavi!" Miranda cries. She struggles to stand but finds herself tripping over her coat. Lavi and the Akuma disappear from her view as they run away. No! I'm useless, I have to protect him! Miranda yells in her mind.

Tears are falling down her cheeks when the stray bullets rain around her, damaging the forest and leaving craters on the ground. Miranda sees Crowley struggling in the grasp of a Level 2 that looks like an armored knight but has a giant pair of scissors as a weapon instead of a lance. The two roll on the ground a few meters from her, when another Level 2 aims at them. Its canon glows with power.

"Die!" The cry of the Akuma is muffled by the burst of energy as it shoots them.

"Innocence! Activate!" Miranda shouts as she closes her eyes. "Time Out!"

Her Innocence; a disk on her right arm slides down to her wrist and glows with golden light, creating a barrier for about five meters radius. It moves through Crowley and pushes the Level 2 Akumas away from them. The other Level 2 with the canon continues to fire but none of those shots are able to penetrate. Miranda's Innocence can stop time within its barrier. As long as it is active, no attack or damage will reflect inside as it suspends the flow of time.

"Crowley! Are you alright?" She says reaching the exorcist's side.

"Yes. Thanks, Miranda." He says as he stands and wipes the trickles of blood from his lips with the back of his hand.

"You're hurt!" Miranda says with furrowed brows, her tears already dry on her cheeks. She closes her eyes and concentrates after a few seconds, and rings of Time Recovery suddenly appear around Crowley's wound, returning his strength: his state before he was attacked.

"M-Miranda?" Crowley cannot hide the surprise in his voice. "You'll strain yourself if you use your Innocence too much!"

"It's the only way I can help!" Miranda falls on her knees, clutching her Innocence. "Lavi is in danger, we need to find him quickly!"

Crowley understands what Miranda means and he nods to her then shifts to his fighting stance, his eyes turned black, the white streak of his hair stands as his senses raises and his blood boils to exterminate the enemy.

"I'll finish them now!" He leaps out of the barrier and join the battle with Lenalee.

~~~~~

Lavi runs like death is on his heels; he hasn't felt this way for a while. He runs not because he is afraid of the Level 2 chasing him but because he doesn't want to be near Miranda's Innocence. It might kill him or reveal that he is an Akuma.

"Not so brave are you, little brat! Stop running and let me tear you to pieces!" The demon sneers as it crawls not far behind him. Lavi doesn't answer, he is too focused on where he is running, avoiding all twigs and sharp things that may cut him.

A single cut or scratch can expose his true identity. He knows how Crowley would react if he smells his Akuma blood, especially when he's hungry. Good thing Lavi had memorized the forest from the last time he went there, he still has the habit of recording things as a Bookman apprentice. He leads the Level 2 Akuma on a clear path without trees. As they arrive to an open field, Lavi suddenly stops.

The Akuma stops behind Lavi, keeping some distance between them. Something's up with this kid! It thinks as he looks at the back of the redhead not moving from where he stands. It shrugs the thoughts, considering how fragile the kid is.

"Tired of running, kid?" The demon asks while rising its mechanical centipede legs simultaneously up off the ground. All are made of blades that can cut through anything. Lavi slowly turns around to face the Akuma. His eyes are lifeless, like a pit of darkness, and it makes the demon shiver from fear; it didn't take long for it to learn who the kid was.

"I-it's you!" It blurts with surprise.

~~~~~

"Walts: Mist Wind!" Lenalee calls in midair as she stirs a tornado from her Innocence's power by directing a forceful kick towards her enemy. The swirling tornado hits the first Level 2 that quickly explodes upon impact. The tornado continues to fly at another Level 2 but only manages to damage its armor. It falls hard on the ground and quickly scrambles to escape. Lenalee does not waste time and quickly lands a heel to its throat, pinning it down to the ground. Letting out a silent cry, the Akuma stops trying to break out.

"You! What do you want from this town?" She asks, threatening the demon by digging her sharp heel into its throat. The thrill from the battle is still written all over her face.

"T..tr..raitor.." It wheezes.

"What?" Lenalee demands rising her brow, this could be their lead to find out the Akumas' aim for gathering in this place.

"Must.. find.. the traitor!" The Akuma says without thinking, Lenalee's attacks are taking its effects. Small chaps and cracks envelope its body, showing the glowing purple energy inside, while its head swells. Noticing these details, Lenalee jumps away from the dying Akuma before it explodes.

Landing lightly on the ground, Lenalee fixes her coat, what the Akuma said runs in her head.

Find the traitor? What does it means? If it was a Noah... Could it be Allen? Her train of thought is interrupted by an explosion with the death cry of another Akuma above her. She sees Crowley descend to her side.

"That's the last one! I'll go find Lavi." Crowley boasts and turns on his feet to find the boy. Lenalee had no idea that Lavi was gone. A flash of worry stirs her heart but quickly drops seeing how determined Crowley is to recover the boy. She decides to pick up Miranda first, before following them.

~~~~~

"... What do you mean?" Lavi asks casually unlike his childish attitude.

"Stop pretending! You're one of us!" The cat-like Akuma complains. "And Earl-sama wants you back!" It says darkly as it slowly steps forward.

"So that's why he's sending filthy Akumas to this town?" Pieces of the puzzle fall into place in Lavi's mind. It was a good move following the exorcists, if he had not done that, these Akuma might have reached and terrorize his town or the Orphanage itself. "But why?" His eyes are fixed on the demon in front of him observing its reaction. He doubts that this thing knows something important but he has to try.

A wide grin with malice creeps in the Akuma's lips before it speaks. "Earl-sama has plans~! Great plans! Just come with me and he will forgive you!" His smile falls to grimace as it continues. "But if you resist, we have to drag you back even by beating you to a pulp just to do so." It extends its claws dramatically preparing to lunge.

"You won't be doing that!" Lavi gives a piercing glare at the demon.

"We'll see about tha-" The demon almost chokes, its eyes bulging out in disbelief and its breathing dawdles. I can't move! Wa-was this his ability? The akuma thinks while beads of sweat drop from its face.

"Lavi!" Crowley shouts as he looks at the scene. He charges at a great speed coming from the forest. Lavi suddenly drops to his knees, back to his child acting then pretends to escape. The Akuma fights with all its strength to move, but was only able to face the exorcist. Gritting its teeth, it curses Lavi in its mind. Crowley lands a death blow to its chest with his bare hand and digs his fangs to its shoulder. In a few seconds it explodes sending debris of the demon machine flying all around them.

"Lavi! Are you alright?" Crowley asks while helping the boy stand. Lavi looks at the exorcist and nods with a smile of relief.

"I knew you're going to save me!" He says brightly. It was an honest act and it makes Crowley remember his fellow exorcist and friend, Lavi. Crowley tries to put aside the thought; he really wants to find Lavi and the Bookman. But it has been six months and still they can't find any information about them and it hurts him.

"Don't be so careless kid!" He says ruffling the boy's hair while looking at the forest.

Lenalee and Miranda join them as they walk back to the forest. Miranda cries to Lavi and keeps on apologizing on how useless she was in protecting him. Lavi tries to comfort her it takes him an hour to calm her down. Then the group decides to return to the town to report the development of their mission.


	7. Chapter 7

Humming a lively tune while knitting, he continues to rock in his chair. The room's ceiling and walls are surrounded by a mist that seems like a dark infinite world; though the candles floating around the room provide enough light. The big, rotund man wears a big top hat and a white coat. He smiles to himself as he knits, then a door suddenly appears behind him and somebody enters.

"What makes you come and visit, Lulubell-chan~?" He says without even bothering to look at whom had entered.

The woman in a suit bows her head; her blond hair is tied on a low ponytail starting on her nape that slings across her shoulder blade. She is wearing sunglasses despite the lack of light illuminating the room.

"Earl-sama." Her voice is soft and calm. She raises her head before she continues. "We failed to catch him." She looks at the Millennium Earl waiting for his reaction, but the Earl does not react at all and still smiles to himself.

"It's alright Lulubell~, we don't need to hurry." His smile then breaks into an evil grin as he slowly turns his head towards the woman. "Especially when the advantage of this war is already in our hands~." Lulubell straightens her posture to look at her master.

"Continue on watching that brat." He says as he sets down his needles and an unfinished scarf on the small table beside his seat. "We will take him when the time comes~." He stands and lifts his right hand, a pink umbrella with a pumpkin head suddenly popping out of nowhere.

"Yes, my Lord." Lulubell says; her face composed as always.

"I want to play with the exorcists, first~!" The Earl says with malignantly. "Before crushing them into pieces!"

~~~~~

"Yes brother, we only managed to eliminate some of the Akuma." Lenalee speaks to her older brother, Komui, through her golem that is connected to the telephone; the golem, a black bat-like creature, flying steadily above her.

"How about their reasons for pestering the town?" Komui asks from the other line.

"It's not confirmed yet but, it seems that they are searching for someone." She pauses, thinking how to explain what the Akuma told her.

"A traitor." She says almost under her breath.

She doesn't want to open the topic about the "traitor", which in her speculation could be that Allen Walker, the 14th Noah, was treated as a traitor by the Millennium Earl. Not now that the Order had gained the trust of Allen after he proved that he had completely suppressed the Noah inside him for the last few months. He even returned to the Black Order and continued on as an exorcist. After Kanda and Johnny found him, they got into a fatal battle with the Earl and a few Noahs. The fierce battle pushed Allen to beat the 14th Noah inside him who was trying to consume his identity. This turn of events may cause suspicion from the Central Division that would put Allen into the corner once again.

"A traitor?" Komui pauses for a moment. "It looks like our enemy has their own issues about loyalty." He says to no one in particular. He lets out a sigh before he speaks. "Lenalee-chan, don't worry. Allen will be fine." He soothes his little sister; as if sensing the small frown creasing her brows.

"Brother..." Lenalee murmurs, her features soften after hearing her brother's comforting words.

"You guys may come home, since there's no Innocence activities in that town and you've taken care of those Akuma. I'll just send Finders to observe the area for a few days." Komui continues. "Besides I want you and the others to take a break."

"Thanks. Then we will depart very soon." She agrees as she smiles.

"Awww~ I'm so excited to see my precious little sister~!" Komui yells cheerfully on the other end of the line, tears starting to make their way down his cheeks dramatically. Lenalee quickly becomes embarrassed as she hears the other scientists exclaim at their Supervisor's behavior.

"Brother!" She almost shouts.

"Yes? Lenalee-chan?" He sweetly asks, his cheeks blush and sparkling stars surrounds him.

"There is another thing I have to tell you." Lenalee states seriously to change the topic.

~~~~~

After having dinner, the three exorcists and Lavi rent an inn to stay. They get two rooms; one for the boys, the other the girls. Lenalee goes out to report to the Order while the three stay in the girl's room having random conversations.

Lavi manages to get basic information about the two exorcists, like where they are from, when and how they joined the Black Order. Although he already knew those facts, he still needs to act curious and ask questions so he can be more carefree while interacting with them.

Miranda comfortably sits on her bed while Crowley sits on the couch like how a gentleman should. Lavi, however, is splayed out lazily on Lenalee's bed. During those conversations, Crowley mentioned his former self's name, which saddens the mood quickly. Lavi didn't know how to react but he tried his best to act normal.

"Lavi? You mistook me as him right?" He says as he rises from the bed looking at Crowley.

"Well you look very similar to him." Crowley keeps his cool as he speaks. "Your hair, and how you speak."

Lavi's sweat drops at his comments. /And I thought I was good at role playing!/ He thinks and mentally smacks himself. The Old Panda is not here anymore to do that so he has to do it himself.

"And your name." Miranda suggested. Lavi just shrugs; he doesn't have a choice about his name and appearance. The Earl prepared the body for him and his name is the only thing that holds his soul, the only name or persona that bears his soul as a human.

"Lavi is our friend." Crowley says staring at the floor, his eyes lost from reality. "He and his Master have been missing for months. We tried to find them but failed." He pauses gathering his resolve. "Though, I still hope that they are alive. That's why we must not stop searching for them!"

The gloomy mood is lifted for a moment. Miranda holds her hands together as she broods about their friends.

"Don't worry I know you'll find them soon!" Lavi says to cheer them up while putting on his most reassuring smile. But at the back of his thoughts he feels sorry for them. Believing in something that is impossible will just hurt them. Life is painful and all they have to do is to cope with it; to see what are the bright sides beyond it.

A soft knock on the door is heard before Lenalee comes in.

"Lenalee-san." Miranda greets her. Lenalee nods in return.

"Everyone, please listen." She makes her way across the room and sits beside Lavi, putting her hand on the boy's shoulder.

"We are going back to Head Quarters, brother said that there's no point in us staying in this town any longer. For now it will be under observation." She says swiftly.

"Will it be alright to leave?" Miranda asks.

"Yes." Lenalee says a bit disappointed. "We haven't cleared the details about the aberrant behavior of those Akuma, but Head Quarters puts it to be an irrelevant fact. We exorcists are much needed on other missions." She reasons half heartedly.

"We can't argue with that." Crowley concludes though he looks perturb.

"Oh!" Lenalee suddenly jerks out of excitement. "And Lavi is coming with us!" She happily announces. Miranda and Crowley stare stunned for a moment by the news. Even Lavi is dumbfounded; he didn't expect it to be this fast.

"Eh-?" Lavi says as he stares at Lenalee with disbelief.

"My brother is quite interested in your ability to identify Akuma. They want to try tests on you to figure out the cause of it." She pauses to take a breath. "And there is a possibility that you are an Innocence Host." She finishes. It takes Lavi a few seconds to grasp everything that she had said.

"THAT'S GREAT!" Lavi exclaims with mirth.

"I'm happy for you Lavi!" Miranda congratulates him.

"From now on you'll be part of the Black Order." Crowley beams at him. He feels Lenalee's hands softly squeeze his shoulders and he gazes up to her.

"Welcome to our family, Lavi!"


	8. Chapter 8

"Welcome to our family Lavi!"

Hearing those words from Lenalee overwhelms Lavi very much. He can picture himself returning to the Black Order; to the only place that he can call home. In the past, he could not admit how he had grown to care for those people; the Scientists that went through all the trouble to create new inventions to improve and protect the Exorcists the Finders who can easily throw their lives away just to support them, and the Exorcists who he fight with side by side. Before he joins the Order, Lavi thinks that humans are stupid for being unable to avoid war, or even to learn from the previous ones. The result had always been the same; everybody loses.

He had recorded forty eight wars with forty eight separate alias, all different from each. War after war, he had to discard his name and all the people he was attached with. As a Bookman successor, he had been trained not to feel for others. He only treats the people around him as part of the history he was recording; they were only mere ink on paper.

He and his master join the Black Order as Exorcists for the sole purpose of recording the Holy War, but Lavi slowly lets his mask slip fighting as an Exorcist. He saw how Lenalee, Allen and everyone are willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the people they hold dear. It was so sincere. He had never met this kind of people before, or maybe he had and just chose not to see it. Like how a proper Bookmen should see things; to be unbiased, not to treat them as his friends for it may affect his neutrality. But as his unwanted emotion grows, he couldn't swallow it. The fact that he cannot be attached to these people when the truth is; he already was in the pit of it. It's hard for him to say it out loud, to show it to them while having a barrier that keeps him distant from them. That was when he was still an Exorcist and a Bookman apprentice.

But now he can admit it.

It was when he took his last breath, when he realized what was really important to him.

His friends.

"Lavi? Aren't you going to take a nap?" Lenalee asks, a flash of concern shows to her face. Lavi snaps out of his thoughts as he turns to Lenalee a bit startled. Lenalee is sitting across from him at the window side of the first class carriage on a train heading to London. Crowley snores silently beside him; beside Lenalee Miranda is also sleeping.

"Ah… I can't sleep. I'm just a little bit nervous." He says sheepishly, as he lowers his gaze to the floor.

"Don't worry too much; everyone at the Order is nice." Lenalee assures him while trying to suppress a yawn. "Oh! I just remembered brother said that somebody is going pick us by the station." She says to herself.

Lavi then continues to watch the scenery outside. Now that he had thought it through, he feels really nervous. Lenalee mentioned that Komui was interested in him and was going to run some tests to see why he has the ability to sense Akuma. Though he knows that those are not ordinary tests – rather, experiments - and Komui is not a person who knows his limits when it comes to science. That mad scientist might kill him in no time. Lavi shivers from the thought of Komui's evil laugh.

And aside from that, the biggest problem is how he will hide the fact that he, himself, is an Akuma. Or will they just accept him if he tries to tell them? But he already settled his mind. No matter what happens, he'll do anything to help them even if they decide to despise him. He leans back as he closes his eyes with hopes that they will accept him.

It is late night when they arrive at their destination. The three Exorcists and the redhead sit on the bench at the platform near the railway while they wait for the one who's going to meet them; Komui failed to tell Lenalee who it was. After sitting there for a few minutes, Lavi gets bored so he aimlessly wanders around the almost empty station. They came in on the last train so no other passengers are expected to drop in. Nothing interests him as he roams the place, but as he maneuvers back to his friends he feels something familiar, his small steps turning to a sprint towards the Exorcists.

"Akuma!" Lavi shouts as he approaches the three that quickly stand from their seat. As Lenalee runs to Lavi an explosion suddenly erupts not far behind the redhead. Lavi falls to the floor and Lenalee crouches to maintain her balance. One of the sides of the ticket booth is damaged by the explosion, and smoke and dust spreads around them.

"Are you alright?" Lenalee asks, finally reaching the boy. Lavi nods as he brushes himself off. They hear a cough from the smoke and a boy with snow white hair wearing an Exorcist uniform appears as he moves his hand to drive away the unpleasant air.

"Allen!" Lenalee exclaims, pleased to see her friend.

"Lenalee!" His gray eyes meet the girl's violet ones. "Komui sent me to escort you guys to the Head Quarters." He says politely as he scratches the back of his head a bit embarrassed by his entrance. Allen barely notices the boy beside Lenalee when his cursed left eye activates.

In a split second, Allen dashes between Lenalee and the young boy. His Innocence activates as he attacks the boy with his Crown Clown. The white cape lashes at the boy, crushing the floor to pieces. Lenalee doesn't have time to react; she is in shock seeing how the floor explodes by Allen's sudden attack. She holds onto Allen's arm.

"What are you doing, Allen?" Confusion and panic creeps to her voice. Miranda and Crowley appear to the scene waiting for explanation to what had just happen.

"It's an Akuma!" Allen states without turning to Lenalee. She can't believe what she just heard. As the smog dissipates, Allen finds out that he missed his target.

"Not just an Akuma, Allen." They hear his voice coming from the other side of the platform. Lavi glares at them steadily. Allen wants to throw another attack but Lenalee clutches his sleeves firmly.

"You know me better than that!" Lavi mocks. "Look closer…" He slightly spread his arms as if presenting himself to the white haired Exorcist. Allen gives a confused look.

Something is telling Allen that the child demon in front of him is different from the rest of the Akuma that he has encountered. He just can't point out what makes him strange. He feels a familiar presence by just looking at the boy, making him squint in confusion.

'What did he just say? Look closer?' Allen thinks hard as he scans the boy's appearance. He didn't note anything unusual. He sees the child's small bitter smile; its features show an ashamed expression as if it has committed an unforgivable sin.

Allen's eyes notice the Akuma's bounded soul just above the boy's head. Having his cursed left eye, he is the only one who can witness the pain and suffering of an Akuma. It has the same appearance as those he had seen. He was used to the horror of seeing these poor souls but this one hurts him too much. Bounded by the chains, the soul has started to decompose and some flesh dangles in between the confines. Allen cannot bear to look at it any longer.

He tries to remove his gaze but a sudden recognition fills his head. Allen's eyes widens, recognizing the loop earrings from its rotting flesh and a loosen bandana on its neck tainted by blood. It is screaming in his head but he can't accept the truth in front of him.

'It is him!'

Allen turns pale and his heart skips a beat as realization comes over him. His glassy gray eyes blur as tears roll down his scarred cheek. Lenalee feels Allen trembling. The other two Exorcists keep still beside Allen.

"Allen?" Lenalee leans in closer to see why Allen is acting strange.

"La…vi…?" Allen whispers, gritting his teeth, his hair concealing his face.

"Lavi." He finally says loud enough to be heard by everyone.

"How did you-" Lenalee's voice cracks as she is interrupted by the white haired Exorcist.

"That Akuma is Lavi!" Allen exclaims his voice is full of hatred. Everyone locks their gaze to Lavi.

"It's been a long time, Bean Sprout!" Lavi greets with his usual grin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys like this chapter. Thank you for those who gave kudos and to those who read. It makes me really happy.
> 
> I also have this story in fanfiction.net, you can read there if you want. (It's has more updates, yoohaney knows.) 
> 
> I was planning to post fan art here for every chapter but.. I still has nothing to post. XD
> 
> I'll be posting everything here soon.
> 
> Thanks again!


	9. Chapter 9

It's dark, Lavi can't see anything. He is not even sure if his eyes are closed or not. He wants to move but realizes that he also can't feel his body.

‘Am I dead?’ His heart pounds just by the thought and his breathing suddenly becomes shallow.

‘No I'm still alive!’ The pain returns to his body along with all his senses at the same time. He is dying. He remembers all the damage he took ever since they were taken. They continuously tortured him to get information about the 14th Noah from his master, Bookman, but failed to do so. The Old Panda was hard to the core.

Lavi knew that they will never succeed in squeezing information from them. Neither of them will ever speak, it's in the Bookman code. They cannot disclose any information that may affect the course of war.

But Lavi has passed his limits; he can't say why exactly he could still manage to breath. He had a few broken ribs, cuts in several parts of his body, burns and was covered in bruises, not to mention that he has parasites inside his body that were slowly eating him alive. It's a miracle that the he had survived this long. Maybe it was because he was still hoping that the Order would find them; if they stayed alive.

At first Lavi had counted the days of their imprisonment in this filthy room but it falls now to an estimate. It has been almost three months, he guesses. He doesn't have enough energy to keep on track.

The mastermind of this scheme is Cyril Kamelot, the Noah of desires. From what he observed, he presumes that the Millennium Earl was not aware of their confinement and the possibilities of treachery by some Noah.

Lavi grits his teeth, suppressing a groan; the pain is killing him. He tries to move his arms but the pain that shoots from his left arm just reminds him that Cyril had left it broken from their last session of torture. He can feel that he is laying flat on the floor while he struggles to subdue his sudden movements to ease the pain. He can't think straight.

‘What just happened?’

He is finally able to open his good eye, turning his head to the side he sees blurred figures. They are arguing on about something but he can't make out of what they are saying. It is only then when he notices someone lying beside him; it's the Old Panda, and he is not moving. Gathering all his strength he crawls towards his master. With just his right arm he drag himself to sit; a pang strikes him around his chest the shattered ribs must have punctured his flesh. Now that his vision adjusts to the darkness and to his delirium of pain, he can clearly see the real state of his old man.

"G-Gramps?" He asks, his voice crackles from dehydration. He shakes him but to no avail. Bookman has an open wound right through his chest. He is not bleeding anymore; he was dead long before Lavi wakes up. Lavi freezes looking down at his master. He had expected the worst but it's harder to accept when it's happening in front of him.

"Gramps!" He exclaims, forcing his voice to come out. "What should I do?" He asks hysterically. With all the torture he had to resist, he never let a single tear shed. But now it all flows down; he is unable to control the grief inside his heart. He'd been living his life by his dream to become a Bookman. He had sacrificed so many things to attain that dream, even his humanity. Now that the old man is dead, he is more lost than ever.

What happen to their Bookman code? To survive by whatever means, just to preserve their record? They have failed. They should have fought this war wholeheartedly from the very beginning. He hates it, he can't understand why he exists anymore.

"Good evening! Bookman Junior~." A cheery flamboyant voice asks. Lavi doesn't bother to look at the fat man crouched beside him and his dead master. He knows who it is; their sworn enemy as an exorcist, the Millennium Earl. He bows his head to his master, tears still running down on his cheeks.

"I have an offer for you..." The Earl continues in a sweetly. "Well, I'm sure you're familiar with this... I can bring back your master!" His evil grins widens in a distorted way taunting the Exorcist before him. "He may continue on recording this war as an Akuma! Oh~ You don't have to blame yourself." He adds with soothing tone. He reaches a hand to Lavi's chin and slowly lifts it to face him, and says in a loving manner, "Just call his name~" He says sweetly.

Lavi's face is expressionless, as if his mind had been reset. He slightly parts his lips to say something but fails to voice it out. The Earl leans forward to hear him better. When he is near enough Lavi finally speaks.

"THERE'S NO WAY I'M GONNA CALL HIS NAME!" Lavi shouts with all his remaining strength directly into the Millennium Earl's ears. The Earl cringes for a moment while Lavi struggles to breath; the outburst had exhausted him even more.

"Very well then~." The fat man nodded to himself. He stands as if turning away.

"THEN YOU MUST DIE!" He howls darkly, swiftly twisting and kicks Lavi in the chest, sending him across the room where he hits the wall before falling to the floor with a loud thud. Lavi's body twitches for a moment before it lay still; his breath hitching.

This is it. Lavi thinks, staring blankly at the ceiling. He makes his final farewell to his friends in his mind, at least now he can admit to himself that he truly loved them; so much. He wanted to fight back, to fight for his life, to fight for his friends. It's unfair for him; to feel human for only a very short time. If he had given his all from the very beginning to end this war, he wouldn't be regretting now. He only found out what he desires when it's already out of his grasp.

He feels numb, the pain is going away. A shadow suddenly blocks his view of the ceiling; a large sword is lightly pressed on his throat. He sees the Earl's grotesque features as he raises his sword back above his head.

"It was nice meeting you, Lavi." He mutters sourly and slashes his sword back down to Lavi's throat.

 

~~~~~  
It's dark he can't see anything. Opening his eyes with a bit of effort he finds himself standing.

"Good evening, Lavi-kyu~n!"

He raises his gaze and sees the Millennium Earl jumping up and down with his pink umbrella. He wanted to give a frowned look but realizes that he couldn't; there was something wrong with his body. He lifts his hands only to see them made of metal instead of flesh.

"No... i-it can't be." He stammers. A black inverted star was printed on his marionette skull, along with the written name 'Lavi' written underneath.

"Welcome my precious Akuma~. I've prepared a body for you~!" The Earl muses as he reveals a small casket. He opens it, showing the body of a child to Lavi.

"Take his skin and evolve my dear creation~." He says lastly, a twist of mirth and malice drips to through his voice as he speaks.

Without a word, the newly born Akuma follows its master's orders, forcing its metal scaled body inside of the child's flesh. After a few minutes to adapt with the new skin, he stands and faces his creator.

"As you wish, Earl-sama!" He said with a blank expression, and a single tear make its way down across his cheek.


	10. Chapter 10

They stand still staring at the boy, their mouths agape at what Allen declared. Their stomachs tighten as their hearts sink; all of their hopes shatter. If what Allen had said was true then their friend Lavi was gone. Miranda almost faints and has to hold onto Crowley's arm to support herself; she wishes Allen had been mistaken.  
Lenalee is the first to react; she steps in front of Allen to face the boy at the other side.

"No! Tell him, Lavi! You're just a boy from the orphanage... Right?" She says, agitation driving her to raise her voice. "It's just-" She tries to find the right word. "A coincidence, you're-"

"It's me Lenalee." The boy says softly, his blue eyes are full of sadness. The voice comes from a child yet Lenalee seems to hear it from her comrade. It reminds her of the look on the face of that boy when they first met him. There were recognition in his eyes and longing for his friends. She covers her face with her hands to hide her tears. Miranda catches her as she breaks down on her knees, crying.

"It's not him, Lenalee." Allen states as he lifts his gaze to Lavi. "Not anymore!"  
Allen bites his cheeks, his Innocence, Crowned Clown, glows as he raises his black left hand towards Lavi. His fingers splay showing the thin sharp edges of his claws; each has the ability to dispel Akumas and Noah.

"The least we can do for him is free his soul." His eyes full of determination.

Lavi doesn't waste any time and darts outside the station. He knows very well that a fight with Allen has the same caliber as fighting the Millennium Earl himself. He has to be careful or his pitiful life will soon end here. One of the reasons why he has to become strong, if he wants to participate in this war, is to be prepared to face either Exorcists or Noah.

As he makes it out of the building, he leaps up and lands on a rooftop, he peers sideways to see where his pursuer was is, only to be surprised to face a silver masquerade mask with white cowl floating in the air a few inches away from his nose. Stunned by its sudden appearance, he doesn't see the claws that charge towards him. He just barely blocks the attack by crossing his arms, sending him Lavi to crash across another roof.

"That was mean! Allen!" He whines, brushing dust out of his suit as he recovers from the harsh landing. "Is that how you greet me after such a long time?" Lavi has furrowed brows and pouts as he speaks.

"Stop acting like him!" Allen exclaims as he rushed towards Lavi with another swift swipe of his clawed left hand. But Lavi now manages to dodge it perfectly, leaving part of the roof to shatter.

"But I'm not acting! It's me!" He shouts to Allen when he gets his footing on the slanted roof.

"Shut up!" Allen shoots back with growl. He clutches his right fist so hard he feel his nails digging his palm despite wearing gloves. "Was it not enough to take our friend? Yet Lavi was turned to an Akuma!" He says with bitterness. He hates himself, not being able to save one his closest friends.

"If the Earl did this to taunt us then I won't let it last long!" He magnifies his Innocence synchronization. Multiple cruciform Innocence-energy appears around Lavi leaving him no way where to run. "Cross Grave!" In Allen's command all of it them blow inward toward Lavi.

But as the smog smoke wears off, it reveals a sphere of white metal scales about the size of two meters in diameter and no scratch can be seen on its surface. Allen watches closely he thinks that it was the true form of the Akuma. "Level 2!" He cries preparing for another attack.

"Wait! Allen we need to talk!" The voice from the sphere says; sounding more like a command than a request. The sphere slowly morphs into giant white scaled snakes. The two snakes swirls around Lavi as if protecting him.

The boy's appearance has changed. He still has his human form but the color of his skin has become metallic gray and the inverted black star is now visible on his forehead. He also has the standard tattoo-like markings of an Akuma; black tears that run down from his eyes.

"Like what you have said, the Earl must have done this to insult us, but I myself won't allow him to do that." Lavi calmly explains, but Allen just snorts in return. It seems that Allen is not interested in what he was saying. Lavi didn't imagine that Allen would be such a hardheaded turd. He thought Allen would listen to him; being the only one he knew who loves both Humans and Akuma equally.

"Allen, listen you-" He starts, but he isn't able to continue what he has to say as Allen had lunges towards him; another destructive swipe of his razor sharp claws is released.

He charges at Lavi without wavering, leaving the younger boy to stay on defense. The white snakes simultaneously shield him from the assaults.

"Let me save you!" Allen says as he attacks. "Let me save your soul, Lavi!" He exclaims forcing the two snakes out of his way. "If you let me kill you with my Innocence, you'll be free!" Allen pleads as he finally pins Lavi with his left hand pressing him to the wall.

"That's the first thing that I wanted to happen the night I turned into Akuma." Lavi says looking straight into Allen's gray eyes. Allen sees Lavi's determination and sincerity in his stare.

"But after what happened to my life, I don't want to waste this chance." He adds, lifting his hand and touching Allen's left arm, causing it to react and spark; hurting him a bit.

"Let me help." As the words fell from Lavi's lips, Allen feels that his friend's soul was at peace; it was not restraining from the chains. It surrenders everything for something precious. Something that Allen understands.

"Just, please, don't kill me yet, Allen." Lavi says with a pleading smile.

~~~~~

"We need to follow, Allen!" Crowley says staring outside the building. Lenalee stands on her feet subduing her emotions.

"We must put an end to Lavi's misery." Gaining her strength she leads the two exorcists out of the building.

"That Akuma." The only male in the group mumbles, he still can't refer it as Lavi. "Why did he deceive us? What he was planning to do?" He adds as they jog to find Allen.

"I don't know, but maybe it's another trap by the Noah!" Lenalee guesses, she can't focus on analyzing the situation, she just wants to find Allen and that Akuma named 'Lavi'.

They search the area and find the remains of the battle but find neither the Exorcist nor the Akuma. They start to call his name, and after several minutes of searching they heard him call back. Turning a corner they find Allen standing facing them.

"Allen!" Lenalee exclaims and runs towards him but she stops midway when she realizes that the Akuma stands behind Allen. Crowley activates his Innocence at the same time with Lenalee and they both shift into battle stance.

"Allen move out of the way!" Lenalee commands to her friend; ready to dash. Lavi lets out a startled yelp and jumps behind Allen, clutching his coat.

"Wa-wait! Lenalee- Guys!" Allen says immediately stretching his hands in panic to stop his friends. "Don't hurt him. He's nice, believe me…" Allen stammers, trying to convince them. They lower their guards but shoot Allen with their questioning glares.

"He's on our side; I think we should listen to what he has to say." Allen turns to see Lavi nodding in agreement.

"Please hear me out!" Lavi gives an assuring smile with a wink as he join his hands praying they will favor him this time.


	11. Chapter 11

The group of Exorcists agreed to settle down in an abandoned alley to let the redheaded Akuma explain. At the small corner; Lavi sat on a cobble stoned gutter, Allen rested his back on the wall next to the boy while Crowley stood in the middle of the street still anxious of the boy's presence. Lenalee and Miranda preferred to stand a bit closer to Lavi, though they held hands showing that they need the support of each other. Losing another piece of Lenalee's world has had a great impact on her life.

Lavi, on the other hand, feels like hell. He himself can't understand what he feels. He is relieved that at least he can talk to them normally as whom he is, he feels comfort because they seem so willing to listen. He wants to say all about what happened to him like a child to his mother, seeking for her comforting words and compassion. He feels nervous for they may reject him because of him being a demon. And he wants to cry to them and finally show them how lonely he is despite his happy-go-lucky facade. His blood boils because of those thoughts, but he forces himself to shrug it off; what he needs to do now is make them understand his situation.

He releases a long sigh; closing his eyes and opens them again to see four exorcists staring intently at him. He blinks twice in surprise; he didn't notice that he had been spacing out for a while. He's lip curls to a half smile out of his stupidity.

After taking another deep breath he starts telling them his story. In an awkward way he introduces himself again as Lavi; he really wanted that to be clear. He tells them why he and Bookman were abducted and who was behind it. He mentions the torture lightly like it's not a big deal, wishing that they'll let it pass without further questions. He didn't want to tell them what they did to him. And swiftly he made it to the climax; his and Bookman's death. Lavi said it all in a casual manner.

"I think the Earl found out that Sheryl was doing something to harm Nea, and he killed us in the process." Lavi states bluntly. "The next thing I know, I woke up…" Lavi's brows furrow trying not to recall what happened. He unconsciously trailed his hand on his throat and loosen the collar of his shirt he slightly squints just to forget the thought of his dying moment. "And, you know…" He pauses for a few seconds. "And that's it!" He said last two words with annoyance.

The group of exorcist doesn't say anything to him, making the air more uncomfortable. Lenalee cries on Miranda's shoulder while the latter does the same thing, trying to hold back her sobs and sniffles. Crowley made his crying face, brushing off his tears with the material of his clothes while Allen mourns silently. Lavi just watches them for a minute but it irritates him.

"Lavi!" Crowley murmurs as he cries. "I... I..." He stares at Lavi thinking hard what to say to his friend but ends up crying harder. Now the older exorcist sits on the ground hugging his knees. Lavi feels his lips squirm to a small warm smile. It's been a long time since he saw him act like this and that was when Crowley killed his beloved Eliade that was also an Akuma. He appreciates how his friend cries for him, he feels important. Lavi goes to the side of his old friend and pats his back.

"Hey! Crow-chan, stop crying. It's alright we can't change what happened." He said to cheer him up.

"But Lavi... Why do you have to suffer all of that…?" Crowley complains; the anger in his voice easily distinguished. "If we just-" He starts, but he can't say it.

And Lavi doesn't want to hear it.

"We can still save him Crowley... with our Innocence." Allen states while looking at his left hand where his Innocence was embedded. Lenalee and Miranda turn their heads to Allen.  
"What Lavi said is true, we need to move forward. The war isn't over." He says with bitterness, his eyes full of resolve. He had promised himself that he wouldn't let it happen again, and the Earl would pay for what he did. Allen's words seem to calm them all; he has always been the light of everyone.

"Though, Allen... You promised not to kill me! Right?!" Lavi exclaims, a bit scared of his friend. And Crowley notices that Lavi has retreated several steps away from them. Allen chuckles at Lavi's reaction.

"Yes I did, but you won't know when I will break that promise." Allen says with the same facial expression he had when he plays poker; an evil grin full of a dark aura and his eyes glow like a florescent bulb. Lavi squeals in fear from just seeing the demon face. Allen really creeps him out sometimes.

"Wait, Lavi. If your soul is bounded then who called you back? And to whom is that body of yours?" Miranda asks as she recovers her composure. Her query springs up for more questions in the minds the other Exorcist around her. An Akuma is made from a skeleton of dark matter it binds the soul of a recently departed soul. In the process of creating it, somebody should call the deceased love one.

"I... The truth is I really don't know." Lavi confesses scratching the back of his head. "Maybe the Earl himself, but I'm not sure." He tries to recall the scene that night but he saw no one but Millennium Earl. "I didn't have a chance to figure that out, I ran from the Noah's mansion after one month."

"You know where their hideout is?!" Crowley blurted with surprise.

"Yup! And I think there are several others." He answers proudly. "And about this body, the Earl gave it to me." He says looking down his shoulders. He felt bad using the body of this child, he didn't know him, he might have been killed by them just to be his host. And with this body he killed many more. It's the painful reality he needs to accept.

"How can you assure that you're not controlled by the Noahs?!" Lenalee suddenly interjects, her voice stern. Her burst calls the attention of everyone. "From what I know Akuma cannot disobey the Earl nor Noahs!" She states, her inquisitive eyes lay on Lavi.

"I don't have any proof." Lavi answers without hesitation. "But I believe they can't control me, because if they did they should have caught me. All I know is that I act on my own accord."  
Lavi himself doesn't know why he seems to be special from other Akuma. He was capable of things that defy most of the basic rules of being an Akuma. And as time goes by he's becoming more autonomous from the Earl's chains. He wants to know why but that would mean returning to the enemy's side. And it is one of the weak points of his plan to join the Exorcists; if they won't accept him without proof then he'll be on his own.

"Was that enough for you to trust me? I have information that may help the Black Order to change the tables of this war." He continues with eagerness. He doesn't want to lose this chance.

"All I wanted is to help. I want to protect you from them." He reasons to the Exorcists around him but his head turns down to the ground. "It's the only thing that keeps me going!" He finally confesses.

Then he feels an arm that encloses him into a hug.

"You just want to protect your friends." Lenalee's soft voice echoes through his head.

'Protect his friends'. Lavi hasn't seen it this clear; he never looked at that angle.

'Right. That was it; to protect them.' He thinks.

Saying those words makes him feel free of all the burden he'd been enduring all this time. It's a simple thought but it eases his faltering existence.

"We'll trust you, Lavi." She adds, still clinging to the boy. That is when Lavi realizes that Lenalee was hugging him too tight.

"Ah- Thanks, Lenalee. But… I can't breathe." He stammers while tapping her back. Then he sees a gold Golem flying around them. He almost forgot about that unique golden Golem of Allen, Timcampy. Then a realizations strikes Lavi when he catches a glimpse Allen letting out a snicker.

"Ah! Lenalee, you can let me go now- Komui might kill me if he sees us!." The boy yells in panic.

"I'm sorry…" Lenalee says as she giggles while letting go of the boy.

Lavi quickly runs to catch Tim but as he jumps to reach him Allen secures the Golem on the top of his head.

Lavi glares at the taller boy in front of him with a disgruntled look. Allen just sniffs the air playing innocent. "What?" He asks looking down at the redhead.

"I know what Tim did!" Lavi exclaims. "He recorded that scene earlier!" Allen just shrugs.

"No he didn't." He says straight to Lavi's face though his lips quiver to a small crooked   
smile. That confirms Lavi's suspicion.

"Allen!"


	12. Chapter 12

Three days have pass since Lavi the Akuma arrived at the Black Order with the rest of the Exorcists. It was like suicide, jumping into the lair of his natural enemy. Though he had persuaded his friends to believe him, the Order was a different story. Lenalee informed her brother first before they brought Lavi to the Head Quarters and after a while of weighing the situation, Komui instructed them to break him in unnoticed.

Komui had a private talk with the redhead that greeted him like he would with the usual Lavi he remembered. It struck him, as it did everybody, how similar the boy's physical features were with Bookman Junior. At first the Chief Supervisor felt uneasy with the Akuma sitting on the couch in front of his table piled with paper works while lots were scattered all over the floor. Lavi then explained to him his status and his intention to help them. He repeated all of what he had told to his friends, though he hates telling the story, and he had just realized that he will have to tell the whole thing again and again for confirmation purposes.

Komui inquired how he could help them; that was Lavi's favorite part. He told the Chinese man his abilities as an Akuma and he received approving nods of interest from the older man. His abilities, aside from detecting his fellow Akuma, are reading their minds, but it gets harder as the Level of Akuma rises. Komui found it good when it comes to gathering information; and of course his fighting abilities. Plus he has loads of information about the Noah. He didn't stay with them as long as he did for nothing.

The supervisor was convinced that Lavi could be a very good asset to their weakening force. He decided to let him live in the Order with everybody, though the redhead would be subjected to surveillance and monitoring at the degree of danger imposed by a Noah. Lavi didn't mind; he'd expected worse than that. Komui then told Lavi to be prepared for he was going to inform the Central and they might act more diversely than him. He was about sendoff Lavi when the boy stirred another topic; his urge to kill.

Komui stiffened by the thought, he had almost forgotten about that and from Lavi's abilities he could be a Level 2 Akuma. And by what method do they level up? Killing humans.

Lavi could just lie about it, now that he was more in control when the urge strikes him, but he decided to tell the truth. He had always been lying his whole life, it won't hurt to be honest this time.

Lavi told the older man that he still had the urge to kill. Ever since he was born as an Akuma he had the uncontrollable desire to kill humans. He had the conscious mind of his soul yet his body can't disobey its nature. Lavi confessed that he had killed to satisfy the hunger although he had slowly overcome the instinct; trying his best to minimize the number of his victims.

He also confessed to Komui that he was the Akuma that killed the last victim on the town Lenalee and the others were last investigating. He explained that even with the urge to attack, he can still choose his targets as long as he's in control and according to his own observation the desire is getting weaker.

The Supervisor took those facts seriously; he appreciated Lavi for telling the truth and advised the boy to inform him when the instinct kicks in. Before Lavi took his leave, Komui apologized and gave his condolences for what had happen to him and his master.

Lavi saw how the man struggled not to tremble saying those words. He was the Chief of European Branch; he has the responsibilities for the whole operation including the Exorcists well being. Like Lenalee, he was overprotective and though he didn't show it much, everyone in the Black Order knew how he treasured all of them. He was one of the most hurt by Lavi and Bookman's deaths. Knowing the man, Lavi thought that he might have done everything he could to find them.

After the meeting with Komui, Allen escorted the young Akuma to his room, the same room which he shared with Bookman. It was at the same condition as when they left for China. Lavi's unfinished manuscripts were scattered on the table. The books that the Old Panda assigned him to read were piled up at the edge of his bed and his used clothes of that day were all over the place. On the other side of the room was Bookman's bed which is exactly the opposite of the redhead's mess. The old man's stuff were properly organized; the old man still finding time to do so even when they were in a hurry for their mission on the day of their abduction.

Lavi felt pain in his heart; who would have thought that they would just end up like that. The Bookmen that were supposed to stay in the shadows to record the unfolding of events of the war were now victims and parts of the ink that will paint history.

The next day was the most exhausting for Lavi - he was interrogated by the Central's representatives. It was like an endless battle of words but Lavi was not one to back off; it was his specialty. Even the Generals were informed though they are all out on a mission. Lavi defend himself from all the accusations the Central could come up with. Komui and the General's supported the idea of having the particular Akuma will be useful to the Order. General Winters Socalo ended the argument by saying that they could easily kill the boy if he proved to be inept. The Central did not insist their accusations, for they were the ones who first tried to use Akuma as the Church's soldiers like the Third Exorcist Project. Plus, the boy was a special case; they could study him if they wanted to continue the said project.

In the end it was decided to let the Lavi stay at the Order under Komui's responsibilities. Some arrangements were made to secure that redhead will not betray the Order and if he showed any signs of such acts, all exorcists were obliged to exterminate him.

Komui also proposed to keep secret the fact that the redheaded boy was the same Lavi that the Order knew from everyone except for the Exorcists and some scientists, because the Chief thought it as a private matter. Though the truth that the boy was an Akuma had already spread around the Head Quarters, causing the people in the Order to avoid him.

But not his Exorcist friends. Lavi still mingles with them like how he always had, picking fun and teasing on Allen's incredible appetite, and catching up on the events that the Exorcists encountered for the past six months. He also noticed that Lenalee became more protective over him; maybe it's because of his appearance a feeble child or was he just cute? Lavi just pushed aside the thought but bear it in mind when Komui threatened him for using his 'skin' to corrupt his precious little sister's mind. The Chief's sister complex will never really change and if it does, it will only get worse.

Lavi enjoyed his third day by strolling around the place with a navy blue Golem flying around him. It was specially made for him by Komui for monitoring his actions, but Lavi suspected that that wasn't its only purpose. He bet that the childish Supervisor made it to make sure that he would not take advantage of Lenalee's pure heart. Like he would do that!

The redhead thought that he would never be able to return to this place. The only place he can call 'home'. But now here he is back in his room, in the place that teaches him to feel again, where he acquired his heart with the people he wants to protect.

Just thinking of the past three days makes Lavi smile from ear to ear. The sun is at its zenith outside his window but the young boy won't move from his bed wearing an idiotic smile.

"I'm home!"


	13. Chapter 13

An Exorcist with long blue hair walks in the familiar hallway going to the cafeteria. His deadly sword his Innocence, Mugen, is slung in its holster around his waist and his hair is tied up in pony tail. He just got back from a mission with Marie, a blind Exorcist. They found a raw Innocence in a run-down factory in less than a week. He can say that it was one of the smoothest missions he'd done, because for some reason no Akuma had attempted to stop them.

But an easy mission won't stop Kanda's irritated expression. As snobbish as he is, he walks without even sparing a glance to the people who pass by around him. He's running out of patience, the fact that he is now at the Order makes him crave even more of Jerry's soba. Of course their chef at the Black Order could cook almost everything but his soba is the best in Kanda's opinion and also for it originates from his country.

Picking up his pace, he turns left and stops when he hears familiar snickers and giggles at the end of the hallway. As he expected, Allen and Lenalee emerge around the corner coming towards him. Kanda tries to ignore the Beansprout, for now he just wants to have some soba and a decent sleep, he doesn't want to add 'meeting an annoying old geezer' on his to-do list for the day. He is about to turn back and go down a different path to the Cafeteria when he sees the third companion of the two Exorcists.

A boy with red hair around Timothy's age is cheerfully talking to them, grinning mischievously at the two Exorcists. Kanda feels a sense of familiarity as he observes the boy as a sudden annoyance hits him.

'Why do I feel like cutting that boy into pieces?' He thinks as his grit his teeth trying to hide his irritation. Then the boy turns his head to him as if he felt Kanda's glare. His smile extends to an enormous grin as he called his name.

"Yu-chan!!!"

Kanda is taken aback hearing his first name for the first time for almost half a year. It ticks him off. The boy quickly runs to him filled with joy to give him a big hug. But before the boy could have his balance to jump Mugen is already out of its sheath and pointed to the redhead's throat forcing him to stop.

"Yu...?" The boy mutters uncertainly, cold sweat starting to build up on his forehead but he manages to maintain a wary smile. Kanda just merely stares down at him with an unreadable expression as Allen and Lenalee carefully move to the redhead's side.

The swordsman is not moving a muscle but Lavi could swear that Kanda is really pissed off, seeing how tight he grips his weapon and by the look on his face. It's a rare display of emotion, Lavi had never seen this one; it's plain angry Kanda but the redhead can trace a mix of pain, rage and regret especially in his eyes.

Allen steps to calm the other exorcist. "Ah Kanda… You haven't meet him, he's-"

"Shut your mouth, Beansprout!" Kanda hisses, not allowing the white haired Exorcist to finish. Allen wants to kick the crap out of Kanda, but he senses that it is a sensitive matter for him so he lets it pass.

"I know who you are." Kanda states dryly to the boy in front of him. Lavi is amazed that Kanda had recognized him in one glance but knowing the Exorcist's temper, he has to do something to calm him down.

"Ah, let me explain" Lavi says as he tries to push the tip of Mugen away from his throat with his finger. But Kanda swings the sword around and puts it back on its rightful place at his throat.

"You let yourself be kidnapped and now you're an Akuma? As expected from a stupid rabbit like you!" Kanda snarls at him. "Maybe it's a good thing! Now I can finally kill you for real!" As the words leave his mouth, he starts slashing and piercing at the boy with Mugen.

Lavi is used to being chased and threaten to be killed by the soba-loving maniac Yuu Kanda. It was almost like a daily routine when he was still an Exorcist. He loves teasing Kanda and the result will always be like this - earning some bruises and cuts - but Lavi knows that he didn't really intend to kill him, except today.

A portion of the wall behind Lavi is crushed by Kanda's blow as the boy just manages to dodge in the nick of time, he runs away from the rampaging Exorcist as fast as he can while apologizing and begging for his life. Allen and Lenalee are left behind; the girl lets out a long sigh, frustrated by Kanda's action while the boy starts to worry for Lavi.

"Er, Lenalee? Maybe I should start helping him." Allen says wanting to aid his friend as they hear his screams, Kanda's cursing and sounds of destruction.

"Give Kanda some time, maybe it's his way of dealing with loss." Lenalee says her features soft.

'Even Kanda needs time.' Allen silently agrees with her, he himself attacked the boy when he realized that it was Lavi.

After a good fifteen minutes of rampage, Lenalee and Allen lose their sympathy with Kanda. A part of the building is heavily damaged like they were invaded by a Level 4 Akuma, even the Science Division tapes the area with danger signs. Lavi is on the verge of death when Allen saves him with his Crown Clown by shielding him carefully without touching the boy.

"Allen!!" Lavi runs to the Exorcist, the redhead's clothes are tattered and it seems like he collected all the dust around the Head Quarters. He looks like he is about to cry. "He'll kill me Allen!" He whines and hides to Allen's back.

Kanda approaches the two, his Innocence still activate.

"Get out of my way, Beansprout!" He yells to the white haired exorcist.

"Stop it, Bakanda! You don't have to kill him!" Allen shots back. "And by the way - IT'S 'ALLEN'!"

Kanda doesn't back off. Instead, he pushes Allen aside to reach the boy.

Allen's patience snaps.

"I said stop it!!" Allen shouts at the swordsman, shoving him with his left hand. Kanda glares at him like it's the first time he's met the Exorcist.

"What's your problem, stupid Beansprout?!" The blue haired Exorcist snarls.

"You are the problem, Bakanda! All of us were shocked by what happened to Lavi but he has a good reason for staying here at the Order!"

"But-"

"And you can't kill him, because I'm the one who's going to do that!" Allen states with authority.

"You can't stop me from killing him!" Kanda yells as he steps closer to Allen a staring contest starts and Lavi could see lightning strikes as their eyes meet.

"You're not keeping up Bakanda! Are you listening to me? "He says sourly.

"Oh! Right! I just remembered. Your hair is so smooth that it seeps through your skull affecting your brain cells. That's why you're slow!"

"Picking a fight, Beansprout!" The swordsman spits, gritting his teeth.

"Wow! You're getting it, now? Good job, slow poke!"

"Let's see who's slow between us after I dice you into pieces!"

"You can't scare me, pretty boy!"

"Che, for all I know you're just confident now because you finally have another member in your midget club." Kanda says with a smirk.

"Excuse me?!" Allen shrieks.

"That stupid shrimp over there." The swordsman tilts his head to Lavi's direction.

"Gee… thanks, Yu! Did you think I had an option here?" The redhead says with sarcasm.

"Don't call me that!" The Japanese teen blurts out.

Before Allen can act, Lenalee suddenly lands using her Innocence between him and Kanda causing a wild gust of wind pushing back the two male Exorcists.

"That's enough!" Lenalee yells to the three of them. She looks irritated, her brow crinkled and her lips curved in an angry pout. Nobody can argue with Lenalee when she's in this mood. The three stiffen at the sight of the lovely Exorcist.

"Allen, I thought you were going to help Lavi?" She scolds the white haired Exorcist, and then turns to the redhead. "Lavi stop whining!"

"And Kanda!" Kanda stares looks over to the female Exorcist but diverts his gaze muttering something with a huff.

"We have to talk." Lenalee finishes as she walks to the corridor next to them.

The samurai follows her but turns to the redhead. "I still have a score to settle with you!" He states before leaving.

Lavi sits on the ground exhausted. He didn't expect Kanda's outburst, he had thought that the Japanese Exorcist wouldn't mind him being an Akuma.

"Don't worry Lavi, Kanda is just upset." Allen says and lets out a long sigh as he sits beside the boy. Lavi frowns at this. "He regrets letting you die."

The cursed Exorcist has an empty gaze Lavi notices and realizes that his friends do not mind him being an Akuma but they do mind his death.


	14. Chapter 14

A bright morning greets the group of Exorcists as they board a boat going to a tropical island near in the Pacific Ocean. They are heading to a small, isolated island where an extraordinary phenomenon is happening. According to the Finder that accompanied them on the boat, the island has a small community and people; the locals are leaving peacefully. But one month ago a dark cloud formed around the isle and brought rain that hasn't stopped since. This phenomenon led some of the villagers to evacuate the island for the weather affects their livelihood.

The group had been transported to mainland by one of the portals of Noah's Ark that Allen navigates, so they have to take a boat ride to get to the island.

"We're almost there!" The man in a white coat with a hood says as he looks at a small island on the horizon. The Finder, Micah, is in his early twenties, hair black and eyes light brown, he is new in the organization and it's his first time being on a mission with Exorcists. He was a bit surprised to find that they are younger than him.

Two of the Exorcists stand to look at their destination; a British boy with white hair and a Japanese teen with a sword.

Allen becomes serious as he think of what awaits them on the island while the grumpy swordsman just snorts. Allen turns to look for their other companion.

"Lavi?" He says to no one, still trying to find the boy. "Oi. Kanda. You're the one who was supposed to watch him." He says to the other Exorcist whom just clicked his tongue in return; the blue haired Exorcist was the one assigned to take charge of Lavi's surveillance.

"How am I supposed to watch that brat if he's always running around wherever he wants?" Kanda complains.

"Maybe he wouldn't if you'd stop trying to cut him in two every time you see him." The white haired reasoned.

"Hey, Allen! Did you just call me?" The redhead suddenly pops his head out from behind the door of the cabin. He is dressed in the formal suit that he has been wearing since he became an Akuma. He did this to preserve the appearance of his host to show at least some respect to the dead child.

"Lavi, we can see the island from here." Allen says brightly pointing the lone island.

"Oh… Really?" The boy only could reply as he scratches the back of his head and look at the sea. He looks not really interested.

"Are you alright? You've been a bit off since we left the Order." Allen asks with a frown as he approaches the redhead. Lavi raises his brows then quickly puts on a reassuring smile.

"No, I'm good! Just thinking about something, don'cha worry!" He says still smiling.

Allen seems to be satisfied with Lavi's reply so he goes on his plan asking for food from the crew while Lavi returns inside the cabin and continues reviewing the files he requested from Komui. He sits on the floor with his legs crossed; his blue eyes are full of interest.

He remembers the last conversation he had with the Chief of the European Branch of the Black Order. Lavi was curious about Kanda's last mission where no Akuma interfered as they acquired Innocence so he asked Komui about this. The older man said that Akuma attacks were depleting while the success rate of retrieving Innocence was increasing. Those facts make Lavi wonder and wanting to confirm his suspicions, he asked the Chief for reports of the details of the missions and Akuma sightings for the past few months.

He feels bad about it. When he stayed in the orphanage, he'd been peeking in the mind of some random Akuma he came across. He picked different information from them. Most were just passing the town, but what Lavi could hear from them were 'must find it', 'Noah-sama is calling', and 'gather more Akuma' which were not really common things for them to say. They usually would just think of killing humans to level up and stop the Exorcists.

And now that he has analyzed the files he got from Komui, his suspicions become more possible.

'Something is up! I know it! Their pattern of attacks had changed and their priorities to hinder the Order were not met. It seems like the Earl is fighting in a different war!' Lavi thinks as he swiftly scans the page in his hands when he heard the crew outside of the cabin curse.

Cold wind blows in from the door and the redhead tightens his hold to his papers and stands to check the crew outside, when the tall, long haired Exorcist enters without warning glaring down at him.

"It's raining outside." He states and settles himself on the floor across the boy with his sword resting on his shoulder. Lavi goes back to his spot and put the papers on his small bag. Lenalee gave it to him before they went on their mission, teasing him on how he would be like a cute school boy with it. That earned him another vicious glare from the supervisor.

Allen and Micah enter the room next; Allen is nearly soaked to the bone by the sudden rainfall while the young Finder is completely protected by his cloak's hood.

"Please put on this raincoat, I've prepared this for you." The black haired male says cheerfully as he rummages his stuff in his baggage and hands three raincoats to Allen.

"Thanks, Micah." The white haired Exorcist says with a smile.

Micah returns it but suddenly frowns. "Though I don't think it will fit on the kid." He says quite embarrassed, he hadn't expects them to bring a child considering how dangerous their line of work is. The Finder and Exorcist look at the boy thinking of what to do.

"It's okay. I don't need it, I won't get sick." Lavi said trying to convince the two. But in the end they decide to repair the boy's raincoat for his convenience.

The rain pours consistently when they step onto the island. The steady drizzle creates a thick fog that make their eyes work harder just to see what's ahead of them. They didn't have to ask the villagers about the possible cause of the weather. Micah had done the job two days before, so they could go directly to the center of the rumor he has gathered. The Beacon Tower.

"Rumor says this weather started days before the villagers discovered that the caretaker of this run-down tower had gone missing. They searched for the old man known as Roland but they failed to find him. Since then the rain never stopped." Micah explains as they look at the tower in front of them.

They are wearing dark green raincoats and their boots are all soaked up with water and mud. The forest around them is almost dead for the lack of sunlight and from the sight of the village, Lavi can tell why the residents are leaving the island. Livestock and crops won't last if this weather continues, and according to Micah, some parts of the area are already flooded.

The tower is made of gray stones, cracks in its wall can be seen and the greenery is slowly claiming the area.

"Why would an old man stay in a place like this?" Lavi asks his three companions as he scans the front door of the structure while the others have already entered and start to search the rooms. "I mean, this place is a wreck. It doesn't even look like it has been preserved?" He continues, stepping inside.

"Some say that Roland really loved this tower ever since he was a child. He would come here almost every day and since the Tower stopped operating, the man decided to take care of it." Micah answers swiftly, he is now beginning to think that Lavi is an intelligent kid. Kanda and Allen wander off to check the rooms.

"Guys, I think this is the old man's room." Allen calls them. It's the only place in the tower that was well kept. They all search for any clues that might explain the mystery of the missing old man and if it really has something to do with the never ending rain.

After a good hour of searching, they reached the top of the tower. They are shocked to find an Innocence just sitting in the lantern; it must have been there all this time. It glows with a green light of power as if reacting to the presence of the Exorcists.

"Another effortless mission." Kanda says unfolding his crossed arms and moves closer to the Innocence.

"Wait! Kanda." Allen suddenly warns making the other teen halt. "The Innocence has been active for a month and there should be a reason for it to act like that. I don't think you can just take it without defiance." As if reacting to Allen's words, the Innocence begins to glow brightly and a gust of wind surrounds it as if defending itself.

Lavi is furthest from the glowing power, he is almost hiding at the back of the door leading to the Innocence. It makes him shiver, he can feel the Innocence; powerful yet fragile in the hands of Noah. He can feel it beating like it was aiming for him.

'For my destruction. Maybe this was how an Akuma really felt towards Innocence.' The redhead muses as the three older man retreat from the now over lit room. They close the door and leave the fragment to itself.

"What does it want?" The white haired Exorcist asks mostly to himself though everybody heard him.

"What do you mean?" Micah says who means his question; it is his first time seeing an actual Innocence. His previous assignments were just about information gathering though he has encountered Akuma and he would never forget those hateful creatures.

Allen smiles softly at the Finder. "Innocence only activates if it reacts to something, like it has found its host, or drawn by the feelings of the people around it, and sometimes just to protect itself." He explains as Micah nods in return.

"Maybe it wants to find the old man." They all look to the speaker, which surprised them to be Kanda. "What?" The swordsman grunts in annoyance but neither Allen nor Micah dare to answer. Allen thinks that Kanda has changed, saying that assumption would mean that he believes in it too, believes that they should adhere to the Innocence's will than take it forcibly.

"Yuu-chan has a point! Let's find Roland. If we find him, maybe the Innocence will stop." Lavi says as he jumps near the grumpy Exorcist full of energy now that his out of the raw Innocence's range. Kanda wants to cut the redhead again for calling him by his first name but somehow he stops himself from doing it.

Maybe he could let it pass knowing that the boy's existence won't last. He unconsciously let out a sigh at the thought.


	15. Chapter 15

The group walks down the long spiral stairs, the cylindrical walls have small windows where the mist of the rain breaks in. The stoned tower is all drenched, weakening its foundation. Anyone that who sees its condition might think that the tower will crumble to pieces anytime soon.

 

Reaching the ground Lavi notices a gap on the wooden floor. There is a reflection of light from below. His eye quickly flashes scrutinizing every part of the floor. In less than five seconds he finds what he is looking for.

 

Lavi smirks as he walks to the other side of the hall opposite of where his three companions are. Allen looks back to his friend and sees him opening an entrance on the wooden floor.

 

"Looks like I found him." The redhead confidently says to the cursed Exorcist. Upon lifting up the hidden door, he finds an old creaky looking staircase leading down into the dark depths under the tower.

 

Allen, Kanda, Micah and Lavi don't waste time and descend down into the secret cellar. The place is dimly lit thanks to the multiple small apertures strategically placed around the walls to illuminate the room from the light outside. It's unexpectedly spacious for a storeroom; a bunch of stuff is laid in an organized manner and at the center of the room is a study table where books and papers are scattered along with a disregarded quill pen and inkwell. But what catches the attention of the group is the figure that lies not far from the table and the smell of rotten flesh that lingers inside the enclosed room.

 

Allen and Kanda inspect the decomposing body while Lavi looks at the study table. From what he observed from the paper's sign and handwriting, the person that lies on the floor really was the missing old man, Roland. He noted those facts when they were investigating the room of the dead man.

 

"How did he die? Was he killed?" Micah asks covering his lower face with his hand; the stench so bad he nearly retches.

 

"No. He has no external wounds. It's like he died in a natural way." Allen discloses as he stands beside the corpse. Kanda silently agreed with him.

 

"Cardiac arrest perhaps?" Lavi suggests when Micah suddenly calls them.

 

"Allen-san! The rain has stopped!" The Finder exclaims full of wonder. He is standing at the landing of the stairs so he still can see the rain from the door outside. The two Exorcists feel the wave of Innocence energy dwindles, causing them to look at its direction.

 

"It's deactivating!" Allen says looking at Micah.

 

"I'll get it." Kanda says as he takes his step to get upstairs, he passes the black haired Finder that quickly follows him. Lavi and Allen are left in the cellar.

 

"It seems the Innocence just wanted the old man to be found." Lavi says still looking at the corpse.

 

"Yeah." The other agrees. "The Innocence might have felt the same with this old man, just like how he loves the tower. It wanted him to be found and have a proper burial." Allen adds with his soft voice.

 

"Like saving its host." Lavi says in a sad tone that makes Allen look at him. What he sees is a face the Lavi he knew would never make. Sadness. The white haired Exorcist feels a prick in his heart by the sight. He was used to see his friend as cheerful, happy and carefree person. He would be the person that changes the gloomy mood into a bright one. Allen knew that a lot has happened to his friend and he can't blame him to change. Now, he is worried and wants to ask what made him act like this.

 

Before Allen could bring it into words Lavi's expression changes to his usual self, no traces of sadness can be found on him; like he never really did. If he hadn't turn to look at the boy he might have missed it.

 

Lavi turns to him and smiles like he found a new discovery. "Innocences are really unpredictable. Right, Allen?"

 

"Yeah…" is the only word that he could say.

 

Kanda keeps the Innocence in his bag. The fragment didn't resist when he took it, unlike how it reacted before. He and Micah went down and found Allen and Lavi waiting outside the building.

 

The sun graces the island with its rays. The light has brightened the color of the forest and reflects in the water like a shining prism scattered all over the ground while some hang on the trees. The warmth that it brings mixes with the cold breeze of wind that greets them with a refreshing sensation.

 

Lavi is playing with the water droplets suspended in the bushes like a child. Timcanpy and Lavi's new navy blue Golem are flying around him. Their wings have been strained from hiding inside their owner's bags taking shelter from the rain. Lavi thinks that the two are getting along very well since they always play.

 

He is holding a leaf where a rain drop is resting; admiring the beauty of such a small detail of nature, remembering every corner, curve, color and even how he felt by just looking at it. Those are things that he can keep forever with his eidetic memory.

 

But the drop of water suddenly pops then the whole bush rustles spraying water on his face. Lavi fails to express his dismay as the two Golems hurl right at his face from the shrub causing him to fall on his back with a yelp. The two continue their race ignoring the redhead that scrambles to stand, holding his nose and a vein popping on his forehead.

 

"AOI! You little pest!" He screams in rage chasing two flying Golems. He had named his Golem based on its color, but the thing had acquired some of its creator's will. Trying to annoy him every time for some reason; that leads him to assume that Aoi is directly controlled by Komui.

 

The three run back and forth while Allen and Micah pack their raincoats. Micah volunteered to take care of Roland's body, saying he'll inform the villagers of its whereabouts and give him a proper burial while the Exorcists should secure the Innocence for they return to the Order.

 

Kanda is trying to extend his patience by taking slow deep breaths. Lavi's squealing and cursing irks him to a new level. Though what the boy does is what the Baka Usagi would do because they are the same, but the child's high-pitched voice was irritating his ear drums. He is about to unsheathe Mugen as the last strand of his patience fades.

 

"Shut-" He stops himself from cursing for he sees that Lavi had also stopped. The redhead has his back on Kanda and facing the still soaked forest as if something caught his attention. The blue haired Exorcist just watches him with curiosity, but after a few seconds Allen steals his eyes from the redhead.

 

"Akuma!" Allen hisses in low voice as his cursed eye activates. Micah hardens at the mentioned creature, at the same time Kanda grips the hilt of his Innocence but Lavi just slowly turns to the white haired Exorcist.

 

"Allen. Let's follow them."

 

_'Noah sama is waiting!'_

 

_'Must find it'_

 

"Hurry up! Do you even understand that we are already late?" A woman in a white dress exclaims to a group of men a few paces behind her. They are slowly walking, not even reacting to the woman ahead of them. "Such pity to be stuck with boneheaded Level 1s!" She says complains stomping on the ground. She has blond hair elegantly tied in a bun at the top of her head, jade eyes and pale skin.

 

"Come on, we don't have all day! We have to get to that cave! Noah-sama will not be pleased!" She shouts in annoyance pointing at the end of the forest near the coast of the island. With that she quickens her pace leaving the lagging bunch unbeknownst by the presence of their pursuers.

 

Two Exorcists, a Finder and an Akuma are hiding by the thick trees and wilderness in a safe distance.

 

"That's a remarkably loud Akuma. I didn't even have to read her mind; she just screams everything she knows!" Lavi notes with disbelief.

 

"Indeed." Allen agrees. All of them automatically make their way following the bunch pack of Akuma. Lavi told them that this is a chance to unveil the true intentions of the enemy by ignoring obvious Innocence activity.

 

The narrow entrance of the cave leads them to a vast natural chamber filled with large stalactite and stalagmite where some meet at one point forming pillars of rock. The group from the Order climbs to higher ground to have a better look.

 

"This is-" Allen says suppressing his shock. They are all freeze by the sight of the whole cavern. Even Kanda has beads of sweat from the tension of an upcoming battle. While Micah trembles, trying to calm himself.

 

Swarms of Akuma are round up at the center of the cave where a circle is drawn, most of them are Level 1s while Level 3s and 4s guard the outside of the circle. It seems that a ritual will be held. Lavi quickly studies the situation and all the facts that he could grasp at the moment. He focuses on reading the minds of the Akuma shifting from one to another.

 

_'We must serve our purpose.'_ He hears from a Level 1.

_'Such weaklings deserve to be sacrificial lamb.'_

 

_'I should have been one of them if I didn't level up.'_ Complains a Level 3.

 

_'All for Earl sama''s will.'_ Says another.

 

_'To find the key to complete his power.'_

 

_'Cataclysm.'_ The redhead flinches by the last word he hears from a Level 4. He falls on his knees by the strain of reading higher level Akuma but he doesn't stop. Still gazing at the demons below, he continues his search, not noticing the worried looks of his comrades.

 

_'That should be enough, little one. Don't force yourself.'_

 

The voice he heard was not from an Akuma. It's too familiar to be mistaken. Lavi's eyes widen in shock as he turns his head to the source of the thought. They are caught. Allen and the others follow his gaze to see a boy sitting lazily at the top of a rock on a rock above them, a bandana wrapped around his forehead. He looks sleepy but smiles at them.

 

_'Five eyes!'_ Lavi exclaims in his head standing up. Allen and Kanda recognize the Noah of Wisdom.

 

"Wisely!" Allen growls as Kanda draws his Mugen ready to attack. It is the Noah that messed with Kanda's memories six months ago. The Noah has snow white hair and a long scarf used as bandana; his ashen skin almost blends in the darkness of the place. He appears to be a few years younger than Allen, but the flash in his golden eyes reveals the knowledge he holds.

 

_'Oh? You're still fond of calling me that, little one? But don't get too excited, you haven't discovered even the half of our little secret.'_ Wisely smirks directly at the redhead.

 

_'It's a good start, I'll find out soon enough.'_ Lavi answers as he crosses his arms also smirking. They stare at each other for a moment when a hand pats Wisely's head.

 

"I bet you two are having another private talk there, mind if I join?" Said asks the man with long wavy hair tied at the back, wearing a white shirt and black pants; a bit dressed down for a nobleman. The Noah of Pleasure looks down with a wicked smile on his face.

 

"It's been a while, Eye-patch kun!"


	16. Chapter 16

Allen activates his Innocence when Tyki speaks to Lavi. The atmosphere around them changes as Crown Clown materializes from thin air. Without a word, Allen lunges with great speed towards the long haired Noah.

An impact of blade to blade resounds around the cave. Sparks of Dark Matter and Innocence energy fly as the two obverse forces meet. Allen grits his teeth, holding the Sword of Exorcism in his right hand, firmly pushing his opponent, who has defended himself with his blade-like Dark Matter energy formed around his right hand.

"Why so enraged, shounen?" Tyki asks in his laid back manner but a tinge of excitement shows in his grin. Allen shoots him with a glare the Noah has never seen before; full of anger. They are still locked in a battle of strengths when Pleasure skims the cause of the Exorcist's outburst. He shoves the younger one with a single move.

"Let me guess…" He casually says reaching his pocket for his cigarette and lights it, after taking a long drag he speaks. "You are mad, because… we abducted your friends…?" Allen doesn't answer but the hardness of his posture shows that he is really doing his best not to explode in rage.

"... Tortured them?" Tyki says playing innocent. "Because we killed them? No?" Pleasure's smile extends to an enormous grin.

"Or is it because we turned him into a Demon!?" Allen finally snaps and steps forward to attack but someone dashes in before he could.

Tyki is stunned by the sudden attack. A green light flashes and it's almost too late when he notices the blade rising from below. With a quick move, he dodges but the slash severs the tip of the cigarette in between his lips. His attacker doesn't spare him even a second and lunges his second blade into the Noah's body. Caught off guard, Tyki receives the blow and skids backwards for a few meters.

"Shut up!" Kanda hisses darkly returning to his fighting stance. He has his Double Illusion Sword where his Mugen extends its energy to produce another blade to pair with it; both are incredibly sharp weapons. Tyki suffers from a small cut on his chest. He chuckles as he runs his hands through his hair.

"He's going nuts." Lavi mumbles while Micah slowly moves closer to him.

"Looks like I didn't just piss off that Allen, but Kitchen Knife-kun, too." He muses as he tries to suppress his excitement of tearing apart these Exorcists in front of him. His Noah side is screaming to end their lives right now but Tyki won't let it end fast, he wants to taste the pleasure of their suffering before ending their useless lives.

"Stop playing around Tyki, we have a mission to do." Wisely states in a calm manner as he stands and turns towards the swarm of Akuma just below them.

"Yeah, sure." The older Noah replies, who manages to calm himself.

"Keep them busy, I'll proceed with the ritual." With that the white haired Noah jumps down toward the circle.

Lavi shifts his gaze to Wisely, the redhead has only bits of the truth behind the acts of their enemies but he must analyze them more to come up with a conclusion.

"Allen! Yu! We must stop them no matter what they try to do!" He shouts to his friends, who nod and tut respectively in agreement.

"Like I would let that happen!" Tyki says letting out swarms of Teez from his palm. The black butterflies fly all around them.

The battle commences between the Noah and Exorcist. Allen and Kanda attack Tyki simultaneously, which only match with the Noah's ability.

"What are those things?" Micah exclaims as the Teez try to land at him.

"Don't let them touch you! If you don't want to be bitten in chunks!" Lavi warns as he prepares for battle. The Teez swarm surrounds the two of them. These are the times that the redhead misses his hammer the most; his Innocence. With his fire seal he could easily devour these insects with his flames.

Micah quickly pulls out his shielding device from his bag after hearing Lavi's warning. "Don't worry Lavi-san! I'll protect you!" He says with resolve as he holds the boy's shoulder. Then he activates the shield directed to themselves.

Micah knows that the barrier won't last long but it will buy some time for the Exorcists to fight without concerning themselves about them. He holds onto his Katana tightly while he watches the black butterflies burn as they try to penetrate the barrier.

Lavi's mind is in disarray, lots of things are running through his head. 'Damn it! I have to focus!'

He wants to follow Wisely and stop him. Hearing the word 'Cataclysm' sends shivers through him; it only confirms its existence and if it falls back into the hands of the Earl, the Holy War will surely come to an end.

'But why now? Why were they searching for it after 7000 years?' The redhead is cut off from his thought when he hears Micah yelp in surprise. An Akuma strides toward them followed by some Level 2s.

The barrier cracks with one strike of the Akuma in the form of a grotesque Clown in a spring box. Its eyes bulge, veins almost popping, and blades are poking out of its slender body. The glove it wears explodes when it strikes the barrier and it's on its second attempt when Lavi gets hold of him.

The Akuma stops its blow an inch before it completely destroys the barrier. Lavi's eyes captured the Akuma's and once they meet he could petrify his subject. An ability he had developed when he evolved to Level 2. Lavi's blue eyes change into his sharp ones of a snake, as patches of white scales appeared on his skin.

"I-I can't move!" The Akuma screeches. "What did you do!" It continues.

Lavi ignores the demon and tugs the confused Finder. "Let's hide! The barrier would just attract them and when it breaks, we're done!" The redhead yells while turning off the device, Micah takes it and follows the boy's lead.

Kanda slashes Tyki with a swift move of his Eight Flower Mantis, all of it connects but the Noah of Pleasure is much tougher than before, taking no damage from it. He can summon his tentacle-like veins from his body any time he wants which makes it hard to land an attack on him. And Kanda is aware that Tyki has not even given them a serious offensive attack yet. He is still playing with them.

The Noah takes his time waiting for the Exorcist to attack.

The swordsman clicks his tongue, a scowl obvious on his face. Allen lands beside him after recovering from the last bout with Tyki. "Get out of here, Bean Sprout!" He suddenly says to Allen.

"Eh?" Allen exclaims shocked and irritated. "Are you crazy?!"

"I'll take it from here! Stop the other freakin' Noah!" Kanda says looking in his eyes. Allen feels uncomfortable; it's a serious gaze that he can't argue with.

Turning back from Kanda, hiding his face for being embarrassed he says "Okay. I'll stop him and we'll return to Lavi." Then Allen uses his Clown Belt to fly towards the white haired Noah.

"You're not going anywhere, shounen!" Tyki snarls as he shoots the cursed Exorcists with his Dark Matter but Kanda deflects it with a powerful slash which gives Allen enough time to leave.

"I'll be your opponent!" The blue haired Exorcist challenges darkly.

Tyki raises an eyebrow and smirks. "Let's finish this!"

The jump is not that high and Allen quickly spots the location of Wisely. The Noah of Wisdom sits at the edge of the large circle drawn by Dark Matter. He has his eyes closed and is in a meditative state. The circle glows with purple energy and the group of Akuma inside are all Level 1s.

"Wisely!"

Allen maneuvers in the air sending his Clown Belt to pierce the Noah only to be swerved by an armored Level 3.

"Don't even try to lay a hand on Noah-sama!" It says confidently as a wide smile spreads across his face menacingly. Then the Akuma flicks his finger.

The white haired Exorcist does not even landed on the ground when another Level 3 tackles him through the wall of the cave. Allen winces at the impact, but he takes that chance to turn his left arm into his Sword of Exorcism leaving no traces of his left arm. His sleeve dances in the air as he pierces the Akuma which explodes shortly after. Allen wants to charge directly to Wisely but a number of Level 3s get in his way.

He thinks as he fights ferociously locked with a series of Akuma. He saves the fourth demon soul when the circle lights up; turning his head to the Noah, he sees him standing with eyes slightly open still looking at the center of the circle.

"What exactly are they up to?" Allen growls to himself, already confused in the situation.

"I'll tell you then... If you are really that interested~" A man suddenly says behind Allen with his usual tone. It's none other than the Earl of Millennium.

"Oh ho! Konban wa~, Allen Walker." The large man in the white coat tilts his top hat as he greets the shocked Exorcist.


	17. Chapter 17

Micah holds his breath as another Akuma passes just above them; he has never seen this many demons before. He and Lavi hide under a rock formation unnoticed by the enemies. The Finder relies on the redhead's instructions in avoiding Akuma. It's not appropriate for him to act like this, letting a child to lead him, but the boy seems to be so sure of what he is doing. They advance slowly but effectively until they reach a cliff that is mildly sloped and brimming with rocks.

 

"Where are we going?" He finally asks the boy ahead of him leading the way; his voice close to a whisper. Lavi turns to him but quickly turns back as if hearing a different voice.

 

"Down there, I need to get there!" The boy discloses in a low voice.

 

"Wha- What? We can't do that! We'll just get in the Exorcists fight!" The brown-eyed Finder flails in surprise at Lavi's plan.

 

"Not if we don't get caught." The boy proudly grins at him and proceeds on his path.

 

Lavi has been tracking every movement of the Akuma around them; it's like having a map inside his head. He can easily see the most effective route going to the Noah of Wisdom, though they need to be extra careful for the number of Akuma worries him so much. Reading the minds of the Level 3 and higher Akuma drains his energy.

 

The redhead senses an approaching Level 2. He quickly motions Micah to hide, but the Finder doesn't see his gesture and before Lavi could warn him, the Akuma has its bulging eyes set at its prey.

 

"Found you!" It says excitedly. Micah almost jumps in surprise, he panics and looks around where he could run to but he can't see Lavi.

 

_'He must have had already'_ , the black haired Finder thinks as he clutches his Katana on his side. Glancing back at the filthy demon he recognizes the Akuma. It was the same demon that attacked their barrier. The Jack-in-the-box demon.

 

"Where is the other one with you? He looks tastier!" It says wearing a face-splitting smile over its makeup. Having no reply from the Finder, it spreads its gloved hand - the tips of its fingers glitter with purple light - then shoots the defenseless young man with dark matter bullets.

 

He staggers wildly trying to avoid the shots, diving behind a rock when he realizes how useless his katana is. Looking down he sees his hands trembling, his heart pounds in fear. He is afraid.

 

His father was also a Finder that died in service. Micah found out the truth about his father's job two years after his death, and wanting to know more about his father, he joined the Order. Learning about the Holy War was priceless. He embraced the responsibility he was given, wondering how proud his father might have felt as a part of the force helping mankind. He hates Akuma and promised himself that he wouldn't fall by their hands like how his father had. But now he can't do anything.

 

Drifted to these thoughts, he fails to notice the silence of the bullets whizzing around him. Without warning the clown-like Akuma leans towards him face to face. Micah had no time to react.

 

"Die!" It says darkly as it swings its fist to Micah followed by a large explosion.

 

Shards of rocks rock fly all over the place along with dust shading the point of explosion. The Akuma slides backwards from the smoke.

 

"Who are you?" It hisses as it halts midair, Akuma blood trickles down from its body. The expression on its face only shows how much pain it suffered.

 

The dispersing clouds of dust reveals a pair of oversized white snakes hovering around the boy with red hair. The snakes are extremely large to be called snakes; with a length of about fifty feet and 12 inches in diameter, hard silver scales shine in the glint of light the cave could supply. The two towering creatures slither menacingly, ready to lunge making the clown-like Akuma do nothing but stare in fret. It feels the energy of Dark Matter flowing from the boy. There's no doubt that the redhead is an Akuma with his inverted black star markings on his forehead.

 

Meanwhile, Micah is as dumbfounded as the Akuma far from them. He was sure that the Demon had hit something and that he had faced death. He was caught in the explosion yet he is unharmed. His wide eyes study the two creatures beside him.

 

"Are you alright?" The concerned boy asks him with a furrowed brow as he crouches beside the man.

 

"Y-yes!" He says with hesitation before he notices Lavi's markings on his forehead. "You're- Akuma!" He blurts in panic but Lavi only smiles at him that stops his hysteria.

 

"Jeez, you didn't know?" The boy scoffs almost forming a pout. "I'm an Akuma that serves the Black Order." Still in shock, Micah doesn't answer. Lavi pats his shoulder then straightens himself.

 

"I'll take care of this, now you should hide!" Micah wakes up from the sternness of Lavi's last few words, making him to quickly move out of the way, but not far enough to be unable to see the upcoming fight.

 

Lavi glances back at the Akuma. "Come! Let's do this fast!" The boy says with haste. The clown-like Akuma grins at him as realization comes to it.

 

"I know who you are!" It says as it pointed its fingers to Lavi loaded with Dark Matter energy before it starts shooting.

 

Bullets rain toward the redhead who is swiftly gliding with his snakes dodging every attack. "I don't have time to talk!" Lavi shouts as he commands one of his snakes to attack the Akuma before them.

 

The toy shaped Akuma tries to pound the darting snake, but its force is too powerful. All it can manage to do is detonate its gloved fist upon contact on the snake's head hoping to hurt it. After a satisfying explosion, the Akuma smirks triumphantly before a wave of pain falls on its senses. It shrieks madly as it notices that the snake had bite off his whole arm. The Akuma's blood sprays as it falls to the ground still wailing.

 

Lavi approaches the Akuma. He walks casually with the snake following behind him while the other one still watches its prey. The clown-like Akuma can't accept defeat; the boy looks like a Level 2 yet his power is same of a Level 3. With a desperate move the demon unleashes a shot toward Lavi with its remaining arm. The snake behind Lavi whirls and blocks the attack before it can hit its master as the other snake tears the arm of the poor Akuma finally making it defenseless as it fall on the ground squirming in pain.

 

If Lavi had his Innocence, the Akuma would have exploded ever since the first damage that it had taken. But now that he is using Dark Matter he can only kill the demon if he gives it a fatal blow.

 

Sensing that it's all safe, Micah runs to Lavi. He is amazed how Lavi fought the Akuma, and is still in disbelief that the boy was from their side. Yet it doesn't take away his surprise to see the demon in a dire state. He stands and waits not far from the boy to give him enough space to kill the demon but the redhead doesn't move, nor do the snakes.

 

"What are you waiting for?" He finally asks, his face crinkles in confusion. "Kill it!" His voice is tainted with disgust.

 

Lavi turns to him with a little irritated look. "I can't." He says with a huff as he gestures his snakes to him. The two loyal creatures move to their master. The boy smiles sadly as he pets them. With one command the two reptiles morph into different shapes then shrink as they merge into Lavi's skin over his hands. The white scales mix into his flesh flawlessly and he returns to his human form.

 

"I can't save them, I can't save their souls." He says as he starts to walk away from the nearly dead demon.

 

When Lavi was still an Exorcist he didn't feel anything when he kills Akuma. His conscience was clear for all he knew was that his enemies were machine, demon and not human. He had never thought that he was killing them for salvation; he was just doing it for survival as a soldier. But now that things are different, he can't seem to kill these Akuma without thinking of their souls. Having a first-hand experience of being an Akuma, he feels pity for these creatures. What surprises him most is that he values Akuma more compared to his human victims. Well, he has lost his faith in humanity once and he chooses his victims very well, only the rotten and wretched humans will perish by his hands.

 

"But!" Micah tries to counter but is cut off by the struggling chuckle of the clown-like Akuma making Lavi turn back.

 

"You should... h-have killed me when you had a chance!" It stutters as Akuma blood fills its mouth. "I've… called them!" The demon sneers showing its teeth tainted with blood worsening its hideous look.

 

It's too late for Lavi to scan his surroundings as a group of Akuma appears around them. The redhead hears a click behind him and freezes as the metal touches the back of his head.

 

_'Level 3'_ , he figures out whilst expecting a shot through his skull.

 

But it doesn't come, and instead, he feels a fast cutting motion followed by a gust of wind. A hand grabs the scruff of his coat and lifts him.

 

"Get out of my way." A familiar deep voice says before he was thrown like he weighs nothing at Micah's direction. They bump their heads together as Micah tries to catch the redhead and falls on the ground.

 

"Owch!" Lavi whines, clutching the top of his skull while Micah also winces as he touches his forehead. "What was that for?" He demands to his pitcher.

 

Lavi catches Kanda's final slash to finish the Level 3. His has his long blue hair down and his uniform is damaged from the fight, Lavi also notes that Kanda earned some bruises and cuts though most are starting to heal.

 

"I don't need you to fight Akuma, that's my job." He says looking down at Lavi. "Now move your asses up or I'll cut you two with them!" He hisses to Lavi and Micah full of rage.

 

The two panics and scramble to their feet to safety as Kanda quickly draw his sword and lunges an attack to the rest of the Akuma around them.

 

"Was he always like that?" Micah asks as the two of them peek at the fight from their hiding place.

 

"Yeah. He acts like that but he's a good guy." Lavi comments watching the swordsman exterminate the group Akuma flawlessly. After a quick series of explosions, the two join Kanda.

 

"Where's Tyki?" Lavi asks casually; he had been with the Noah for a month and was used to using their first names; he had even given them nicknames.

 

"He left." Kanda says shortly, not even looking at the redhead. A flash of irritation shows on his face.

 

Suddenly a purple light illuminates the center of the cave right at the Circle below them. All of them tense and go down the slope. They're too late; whatever Wisely wants to do is done now. Looking down at the view below, they see Allen beside the still glowing Circle with a familiar large man. Lavi grits his teeth in rage finally seeing the cause of his misery as Akuma.

 

"It's Millennium Earl!"


	18. Chapter 18

"What exactly are they up to?" Allen growls to himself already confused in the situation.

 

"I'll tell you then... If you are really that interested~." A man suddenly says behind Allen with his usual tone. It's none other than the Earl of Millennium.

 

"Oh ho! Konban wa~, Allen Walker." The large man in the white coat tilts his top hat as he greets the shocked Exorcist.

 

Allen just snorts.

 

"The sun is still up, you creep." He replies flatly.

 

"I can see that you never change." Fully ignoring what Allen said.

 

The Earl opens his mouth to say something only to be cut off by Allen's attack. The white haired Exorcist swings his sword without a word, sending a powerful air blade destroying everything in its path towards the Earl. The rotund man jumps swiftly and lands on a rock with one foot as he dodges.

 

"Persistent as always~. But I'm not here to fight you!" He says with his never fading enormous grin plastered across his face as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

 

Allen wants answers. The Millennium Earl's presence only worsens their situation though a part of him is glad to face the fat enigma; he was itching to fight and get revenge for what he did to Lavi.

 

But his thoughts of defeating the Earl fade when he feels a piercing pain right though his cursed eye. It activates and the white haired Exorcist falls on his knees from the sudden pain that it caused to his skull.

 

_'Damn! It hurts!'_ He thinks covering his left eye with the back of his hand that still holds his sword. Blood flows down from his cursed eye; by instinct he swivels to look at the circle and his suspicion was right.

 

Allen is terrified. His heart sinks with dread as his stomach lurches almost tasting the bile forcing its way out at the back of his throat, his mouth ajar in disbelief seeing all the Level 1s being destroyed simultaneously by a force inside the Circle. Not only seeing but hearing their souls as they plead to be saved; it hurts Allen.

 

Ignoring the pain in his eye he strikes at the Circle with his sword. "No!" Allen howls, as the barrier around the circle throws him backwards, electrified by Dark Matter.

 

By the time he raises his head to stand, what he witnesses are the pieces of the last demon soul disintegrating into thin air.

 

Allen stands as he shakes in anger, he wants to scream in rage but he doesn't let himself lose control. Instead, he tries to calm down. He notices that the remains of those Akuma have been pulled by a black hole at the center ground of the Circle. Allen feels a familiar sensation from the pit.

 

"It's like the Ark." He says to himself.

 

"Allen!"

 

The white haired Exorcist spins to the high pitch call of his friend. Lavi slides on a cliff down to him, Kanda and Micah not far behind him.

 

"Lavi! Guys!" Allen responds, relieved to know that they are safe.

 

Before Lavi can get to his side, the boy stops and stares at the Millennium Earl who also has his eyes on him.

 

Lavi is sure that there's a meaning behind the way the Earl looks at him. He feels very uncomfortable every time the 1th Noah lays eyes on him. He didn't notice that on his first day as an Akuma but now that his mind is conscious he can tell the difference of the man's stare. It's like he was being dissected and peered directly to his soul. And now the redhead can see the Earl's effort to subdue his excitement in that usual grin he wears.

 

"What's happening?" Micah blurts out watching as the black hole forms quicksand in the ground.

 

The barrier is gone but some Level 2s are still hovering around them. Wisely leaps and lands by the Earl's side. That raises the guard of the Exorcists, Kanda and Allen are ready to attack.

 

The Noah stands lazily behind the Millennium Earl as he ruffles his white hair.

 

"No luck." Wisely discloses with a frown.

 

"Looks like I don't have a choice. I'm getting bored of this hunting game." The Earl ponders to himself holding his chin in deep thought. "It's decided then~." He suddenly jerks and jumps to a higher rock formation gleefully swinging his pink umbrella.

 

"Exorcists! This war is almost at its end and I'm giving you a last chance to fight back~." He declares with his flamboyant way of speaking that echoes across the cave.

 

The Earl's statements only earn confused looks from Allen and the rest, except for Lavi.

 

"I have good news and bad news~." He says in a sing song tone. "The good news is I've found the Heart of Innocence~!" His smile widens drastically. "And I have my hands on it~!" He says lifting his free hand as if holding something. Everyone is dumbfounded from what they heard.

 

"That's impossible!" Lavi yells to him in disbelief. "If you have it then-" His eyes shifts to Allen's sword, his Innocence.

 

"That's where the bad news comes in. It's a pity but I can't destroy it!" The Earl whines in disappointment though the grin stays on his face.

 

Allen still can't believe what he just heard; it can be a trick to lead them to a trap, but he can feel his Innocence waver at the Earl's claim. Being one with his Innocence, a parasitic type, gives him a better understanding of his Innocence. It's like the Innocence is warning him.

 

"It was the reason why they're not interested in destroying regular Innocence anymore." Kanda says holding Mugen tightly.

 

"But what are they doing?! All those Akuma died for what?" Allen yells bitterly.

 

"I'm sure Lavi-kyun has figured it all out by now~. Am I right, former Bookman Junior~?" The Duke states sweetly to the redhead. All heads turn to him asking for answers.

 

Lavi's sweat drops not from the Earl's words but from the truth that he's just realized. They are losing the war.

 

"T-The Heart's safety won't last for long. If the Earl finds what his is seeking for, he could destroy it immediately." He says, frustration written all over his face.

 

"As expected from our little one." Wisely says proudly with a small smile tugging at his lips. But Lavi only shoots him a hateful glare that makes the Noah smirk even more.

 

"The War has reached its Final Act! It's a race! Stop us if you can~!" The Millennium Earl twists with mirth and swings his pink umbrella as an Ark entrance appears behind him and Wisely.

 

The white haired Noah turns to leave while his master watches the group of Exorcists that are still terrified from what they've heard.

 

"Oh... And Lavi kyun~. You are always welcome to come with us. You're still one of my precious Akuma after all." The Duke says sweetly as he strides into the Ark.

 

Allen opens his mouth to say something, to fight back, but he stops and grits his teeth. He can't find the words, he feels like he has been slapped by defeat.

 

The Ark disappears in thin air; none of them move until a Level 3 Akuma suddenly throws a ball of energy towards them. But Kanda is already on his feet, deflecting the ball with a sharp slash of Mugen he yells. "Oi, Bean Sprout! How long do you intend to stand there! Are you hoping to grow taller if you stand all the time and being useless!"

 

Allen snaps out of his thoughts by the mention of the word 'Bean Sprout'. He can't let Kanda do all the bickering. He senses all the Akuma around them aiming to attack, a lot of souls have been sacrificed earlier, and he can't allow this bunch to be damned as well. He regains his resolve. Allen invokes his Innocence and reforms his Sword of Exorcism into Crown Clown and sends its web to pierce through multiple Level 2s causing them to explode.

 

"It's Allen! BaKanda! How stupid are you not to remember my name." Allen grunts as he darts through the side of the group of Level 3.

 

The swordsman on the other hand deals with a Level 4. He doesn't have chance to talk back to the cursed Exorcist but he does vent his annoyance to his enemy, giving it pounds and cuts with his Innocence.

 

As the battle continues, Lavi and Micah find a hiding spot. It's better for the two of them not to get involved in such fight. Lavi is taken by the Earl's revelation; he never thought that the Noah had found the Heart of Innocence. It is clear in Lavi's mind what the Millennium Earl is planning but how and when did they have the Heart is a mystery to him.

 

Whilst being drawn to his thoughts, the redhead still has full account of what is happening around him. The Akuma are defeated swiftly by the two Exorcists as they compete with each other, and he notices that the Circle deactivates its power as the two Noah leave the place. They left the black hole that dissolves itself.

 

Lavi leans on the rock behind him with a sigh. He and Micah are sitting in a small delve covered by rocks patiently waiting. Hearing the sound of the battle outside and the occasional curses and insults he can tell that the two are alright.

 

"Bringing this news to the Head Quarters is going to be a devastating sight." He frowns to himself touching his temples with his small fingers. "This is really bad."


	19. Chapter 19

The silence is deafening in one of the conference rooms of the Black Order. All of the Branch Chief Officers, two of the Generals and some Scientists are present in this room. Despite their number inside the room, none have said a single word since they had arrived. Everyone is waiting for other members to come.

 

The large rectangular table at the center is almost filled, the Head Officer of European Branch and Asian Branch sits along with the other Chiefs at the left side facing the Generals consisting of Klaud Nine and Winter Socalo, and an empty seat reserved for General Froi Teidoll.

 

These are the people that compose the assembly that will discuss the fate of the Holy War before them, but a rare spectator is now present with them seated at the rear end of the table. Fumbling with his navy blue golem in his little hands as he watches his companions, his blue eyes roam to their faces. For the last fifteen minutes of doing nothing but waiting in the room, he had the chance to observe everyone. Some of them get conscious from sensing his glare while some others don't even care. From all the expressions they give him - disgust, hope, boldness, concern - only one was present to all of them.

 

_Fear._

 

They are all aware of the news the Millennium Earl announced the day before.

 

When Lavi and the Exorcists returned from their mission, they found the Head Quarters in chaos. An intruder had breached the security with a few Akuma resulting to in the injuries of guards and Exorcists. The attack only stopped when a certain Noah had delivered a message to the Head Officer of European Branch from the Earl. It was Tyki Mikk who brought it to Komui Lee which explains why he suddenly left his fight with Kanda.

 

A hand suddenly takes the golem from his hand and lets it fly. Lavi turns to his left in curiosity.

 

"Stop playing." Kanda grunts to the redhead, crossing his arms as he leans in his chair.

 

"I'm not playing." Lavi says casually but a crease is forming on his brows. "Do you really think of me as a child?"

 

"You don't even have to ask."

 

"Since when?"

 

"Ever since I heard you talk non-stop even though I'm not interested in talking to you." Irritation flaunts in his voice.

 

"Well, you started this conversation." The boy says grinning as he rests his hands at the back of his head, leisurely stretching in his oversized chair. His feet can't even reach the floor. Lavi is now wearing shorts instead of dress pants though he still has his dark green vest and coat while Kanda wears his Exorcist uniform.

 

"Tim?" The white haired Exorcist mutters as his golem ascends from his head and play with the navy blue golem. Allen is sitting at the right side of Lavi facing Kanda. The three of them were required to be present in this meeting for they had encountered the Earl themselves and some of the details need confirmation.

 

Lavi opens his mouth to say something but gets cut off when a deep voice grunts to get their attention. The source of the voice is Malcolm C. Leverrier sitting at the other end of the table facing the redhead Akuma. The two didn't notice the arrival of the Central's high ranked Inspector, wearing his hard face and scrutinizing eyes that glare at Lavi. The boy wants to stare back but another group joins them, stealing his gaze, entering the conference before a Vatican guard closes the door. The last to come is General Tiedoll who settles himself in his reserved seat.

 

"We have gathered everyone here to discuss the situation we are currently in." The Inspector starts before taking a deep breath. "We are losing this war." He concedes darkly. None of members say anything.

 

"The Vatican was alarmed by the Millennium Earl's claim that he has the Heart. They want us to retrieve it immediately." The Inspector shoots a meaningful glance at Komui Lee. "This mission is a crucial part of this war; it's our only chance! And if we failed this one, the second coming of three days of darkness is inevitable."

 

"Please give us a short review of the recent events, Chief Officer of European Branch, Komui Lee." The Inspector says lastly as all attention shifts to the Officer. The dark haired man holds a folder in front of him; giving a glance to the material he takes a deep breath before he speaks.

 

"For the past few months, we were satisfied by the success rate of all the missions of our Exorcists around the world; acquiring Innocence and exterminating Akuma." He pauses for a moment. "But yesterday, we have confirmed that our hard work was all ignored by the Millennium Earl because he has acquired the Heart of Innocence. A Noah had infiltrated this Branch just to pass this information. We have also confirmed that they are doing other activities that involve a ritual that sacrifice Akuma, though the purpose is still unknown. All of these findings are all vague in details, which is a vital factor for our planning to counter the enemy."

 

"But we have someone here that could explain everything." He then turns to the boy at the other end of the table. All eyes are locked on the redhead, Lavi stares at Komui for a moment. "For those who haven't met him, he is Lavi, an Akuma that works for the Black Order." Lavi nods at Komui as the man takes his seat.

 

"Would you mind telling us your assumptions about these events?" Leverrier directs to him. "Or a certain code won't allow you to do so?" The redhead knows what he is pertaining to, Bookman Code.

 

"I'll tell you, the Earl revealed it himself so it's no secret anymore and besides my purpose here is to help you win this war." The Inspector doesn't respond to the boy and Lavi takes this as a sign to start his explanation.

 

"I'll be direct to the point, have you heard of 'Cataclysm'?" The boy asks, his arms are resting on the table watching the reactions of his companions.

 

Leverrier stiffens hearing the word while others exchange ignorant looks though none say a single word.

 

"It was named from an ancient lore belonging to an unknown civilization after our ancestors had created the cube. It was told that Innocence is not the only thing that was left from the battle between the Earl and the first wielder of Innocence. The Millennium Earl also lost something. It was said that half of his power was crystallized and lost in the battle, and like the Innocence it was rumored to be washed out by the great flood 'Three Days of Darkness'. Lavi pauses as he remembers the time his master told him the facts. They were quite puzzled back then on why the cube didn't contain information about the said crystal about the crystal. "And the ancient people called it 'The Crystal of Cataclysm'."

 

Everyone listens intently to the redhead, their minds wonder how this crystal relates to the events, and then one of them breaks the silence.

 

"Do you mean that the Millennium Earl only uses half of his true power against us?" Bak Chang inquires in disbelief.

 

"That was proven to be true just now since Earl is trying to find the crystal; therefore its existence is true." The boy concludes. "The ritual that they are doing is related to finding the Cataclysm though I have to confirm something." He turns to the white haired Exorcist. "Allen, you saw the Black Hole inside the circle when Wisely finished the ritual, what do you think of it?" The redhead asks casually.

 

Allen leans his back on his seat as he tries to remember the scene back then, he didn't really have the chance to carefully look at the black hole, and he was hurting and enraged that time. Then he recalls something important.

 

"Right! That thing! It discharges the same air as the Ark!" Allen realizes; his mind analyzes further. "It was a dimensional portal." He says lastly.

 

"As I had assumed." Lavi says looking down at the table thinking.

 

"So Cataclysm is located in some dimension.." The North American Branch Head muses.

 

"But why use a ritual to open a portal? Can't they use the Ark?" A scientist says to the others.

 

"Would that mean that we'll not be able to use our Ark to find that crystal?" Another one asks. After a minute of discussion Komui speaks.

 

"Finders already set a perimeter on that area, I'll be sending researchers to study the entire cave, and all aspects must be inspected, especially why the Noah had chosen the place since we are dealing with dimensional portal." He explains sternly. Everyone agrees to his decision.

 

"The Earl also said that he can't destroy the Heart; that was the reason why he has to find Cataclysm to complete his power." Lavi darkly continues. "It is a race."

 

"We must stop the Earl from finding that crystal, and then we can focus on acquiring the Heart." Leverrier says more with authority than suggestion. "We don't have enough force to do both at the same time. We only have twelve Exorcists including the Generals, we must use them efficiently."

 

Komui and some of the other Branch Heads are displeased of the term the Inspector said; use. They all know that he really meant it to be as use for tools than as individuals. He put aside his distaste for the man and continues the conversation.

 

"Now let's discuss the details of the research, I need all the Branches' help for a better result."

 

The meeting proceeds particularly about the technicality of exploration of the dimensional portal created by the Noah's ritual. Allen, Kanda and Lavi listen to the Scientists' discussion, before they start on battle strategy.

 

Too drawn to the conversation Lavi doesn't notice a pair of eyes watching him closely. Kanda clicks his tongue silently as he stares at the boy. _'If what that damn Noah said is true, I have to be more on guard, though I can't tell anyone about it.'_ He thinks; a scowl is forming on his face. _'...Or else stupid rabbit will be in trouble.'_

 

~~~~~

 

"Eh..?" A girl's voice flaunts in awe. She is sitting in an elegant armchair; her ashen legs are hanging over the manchette and her back leans on the other. "You told him our plan for Junior?" Road added shutting the book on her lap as she stares at her uncle. Tyki is standing taking in the view outside of the window. They are in one of the Camelot mansions.

 

"Not everything... I told Kitchen Knife-kun that we'll take Lavi back and he's an important part of our plan." He says turning to his niece like he did nothing wrong. Road's lips ajar in disbelief, she wants to punch Tyki in the face right now. The Earl strictly ordered them not to spill such information to anyone and Tyki had told it to an Exorcist. But Road figures that Pleasure must have a reason for his action.

 

"HOW COULD YOU DO THAT! LERO!" Shrieks the pink umbrella with a pumpkin head as it lunges to the male Noah. Their faces should have hit to each other if Tyki hadn't held its wiggling body.

 

"I did it on purpose, to secure the boy's safety from the Order and some stupid Akuma." Tyki states in a laid back manner.

 

"Now that they know that we need him, they could just kill him! Lero!!" Lero screams into Pleasure's ears. "This is bad! Lero!!" Tyki grimaces as the pumpkin whines.

 

"Kitchen Knife-kun will not kill him; he'll preserve the boy for as long as he can." He muses looking back at the view outside of the window though his gaze shows that he is seeing something in his thoughts other than the field at the back of the mansion. _'I can't wait to crush their hopes.'_

 

Road catches the spark in the eyes of her uncle, then she understands. _'Humans are really weak.'_ She thinks as she continues to read her book.


	20. Chapter 20

 

The morale of the people in the Church of the Black Order rises from the information and plans they have set into action. Scientists are all busy and so are the Finders. Exorcists are sent on missions per team for efficiency and also to prioritize their safety. They should be able to protect the only force that can fight their enemies now that they are preparing for the final battle.

Lavi needs to stay inside the Headquarters to assist the scientists in analyzing data which makes his personal keeper and guard, Yu Kanda, also stay with him all the time. The two of them are at the cafeteria for breakfast. 

"I'm bored..." Lavi mutters with his head face down on the table. He doesn't feel like eating today. He has been thinking a lot for the past few days and he's getting sick of it. He is now openly giving information needed for the research and anything that would help the procedures, unlike in the past when he was still a Bookman successor. He'd just shut his mouth, even if all the facts were laid out in front of him, to not affect the war. Now he has chosen the side he wants to win. But the boredom of his daily routine tires him; he wants to do something different, something that'll change his day.

He lifts his gaze to the blue haired Exorcist in front of him. Kanda is quietly eating his Soba traditionally like doing tea ceremony.

_'I can't make fun of him; he is always on guard and watching all of my actions. I can't even sneak and braid his hair.'_  The boy thinks in disappointment. His face is unconsciously turning into a pouting expression.  _'I wish something unusual will happen.'_

Just then something hard falls at the top of his head crushing his chin on the table.

_'Damn it!'_  Lavi thinks dazed from the impact. The cause of the sudden crush is none other than Timcanpy that has grown large and still resting on the redhead chewing something.

"Tim!" Allen shouts to his Golem and tries to pull it off from Lavi. "Spit it out!" He continues, Timcanpy open its mouth and a navy blue golem weakly flies out from it. "You two play too much!" He exclaims before he notice Lavi under his Golem that had shrink to its normal size. Lenalee peeks from behind Allen and saw the redhead's state.

"Lavi? Are you alright?" She asks tilting her head causing her shoulder length hair bounce. 

"Y-yes..." The boy weakly replies. 

The dining hall of the cafeteria is now slowly filled by the people of the Black Order as the two Exorcists join Lavi and Kanda at their table. Lenalee has a sandwich and coffee while Allen has ordered loads of food for his breakfast; the most important meal of the day.

~~~~~~

"Thanks for the meal!" Allen says, displaying his child like smile with satisfaction. Jerry's cooking never fails. He sets aside his tray full of empty plates and bowls along with Kanda's. Lenalee still has her coffee.

"How's the research going?" The only girl of the group asks the boy beside her. Lavi turns to her recalling his visits to the science department and the site.

"They had confirmed that the cave itself has dimensional instability even before the ritual was held. Now they are trying to back track the records of Akuma activities to point out the locations where the Noah might have held the same ritual." Lavi pauses and closes his eyes for a moment. "All of these are done to find the next place where they will try to open another portal." The redhead realizes how serious he looks when he's explaining, when Lenalee shows a worried gaze over him.

"But it's alright! Everything is fine." He says in haste to change the atmosphere and gives a reassuring smile. The short haired girl blankly looks down on her cup of coffee. Her worried features become sad and tears are threatening to come out.

Lavi, Allen and Kanda are surprised by her sudden reaction but they stay silent. The redhead stiffens when Allen whispers to him from his left.

"You made her cry!" His head spins to the white haired Exorcist in panic.

"I did nothing! Why would she cry?" He mutters to Allen in low voice; sweat starting to drop from his face. They both turn to the girl that seems to be so down. There could only be one reason for her to act like that. Allen stands and sits to Lenalee's side.

"Hey… Lenalee."Allen softly addresses her with kindness as he put his hand on her shoulder. Lenalee lifts her gaze to look at him. "Is there a problem? We're here you know.. y-you can tell us, we're friends." He continues in stammer. Lenalee nods and wipe her tears at the edge of her eyes. Lavi and Allen wait for the girl to speak while Kanda stays impassive in his seat. When she manages to calm herself she starts to talk.

"I'm just scared, now that we are in this situation. I know that the war will end soon..." She looks at them to find courage. "I'm afraid to find the outcome. I've been living in the present, fighting Akuma and protecting my family. I don't know what will happen after the war." She added looking down on her clenched hands resting on her lap.

Lenalee trusts her comrades. They will all fight till the end, and it scares her to see them fall one by one. And her nightmare already started from Lavi and Bookman. Somebody holds her right hand and lift it in front of her.

"Lenalee." Allen's snaps her from her thoughts. She slowly casts her eyes to him. "Have faith in me. I'll destroy the Earl. I promise." Allen's face is calm but his eyes are full of determination. Lenalee sees hope from the boy. If a miracle would happen, Allen is the only one who could do it.

"Yeah, don't worry too much. I'm here, ya know." Lavi says grinning as he put his hands together with them. "I'll outwit those Noah no matter what!" Lenalee broke a smile to the both of them that they return sweetly.

The three of them look at Kanda their hands still hanging (held) in the air. "What?" The samurai asks even he already knows what they want. Allen and Lavi look at him expectantly while Lenalee is also waiting for his cooperation.

"Che." He huffs but joins his hand with them. "I'll cut all those Akuma into shred!" Kanda adds not directly looking at them.

Lavi and Allen grin at Kanda's forced look as Lenalee giggles. "Thank you, guys." She says with jest.

"AAAAARRRRGGG! HOW DARE YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LENALEE'S EMOTIONS!!" A familiar scream rings around them. The three of them quickly retract their hands from Lenalee which also shocks the girl at the sudden reaction. They all look around where the voice came from and found a flying Golem above them.

"Aoi?!" Lavi exclaims.

"I will not forgive anyone who does that to my precious Lenalee!" A hysterical whine comes from the Golem.

"Komui!" Kanda scowls as they all stand from their seats.

"I KNEW IT!" The redhead blurts pointing at the navy blue Golem. "There was something odd about that blue devil!" 

"Calm down, Komui-san! We didn't do anything wrong to Lenalee!" Allen tries to reason the flying golem.

"SHUT UP!" The Chief exclaims from the Golem's speaker. "Taste the wrath of my Komurin X! Roman Number Ten!"

Everybody in the cafeteria hears the turmoil of the Branch Chief, making them start to back away from the group of teens in fear from getting involved. They are all aware of how dangerous Komui's inventions are.

They all wait hesitantly for a moment, it's time for the evil machine to appear but after a few seconds of suspense nothing comes. The Golem is still flying steadily above the three Exorcists and Akuma staring at them.

"Nothing?" Lavi asks in awe though beads of sweat still runs down his temples.

"Allen!" A familiar voice shouts from the entrance of the cafeteria. They all see Chief Director Reever, Johnny with other Scientists running toward them.

"Reever-san." The white haired boy replies.

"Allen you have to run! We heard your conversation with Komui! The Komurin he made is very dangerous!" He exclaims in one breath. "Everybody hide! Protect yourself no matter what, until we stop that monster!" Reever announces to the crowd in the cafeteria.

With that everybody acts and scrambles to safety. All of the Finders and Scientists present are running in different directions to find a hiding place. Even Jerry, their head cook, and his crew are closing the window from to the kitchen. Reever motions Allen and the others to follow him with the other Scientists. Everyone starts to run except for Kanda.

"Yu? Let's go!" Lavi shouts stopping at the exit of the dining hall. 

"I won't run or hide from that robot!" Kanda grunts with crinkled brows. "And don't call me that!"

"Yu Yu Yu Yu!" The redhead repeats with blank expression. Annoying Kanda is the worst thing to do right now but Lavi can't help it. This day is sure going to be a different one from the others. Kanda doesn't fail Lavi's expectations and quickly dashes towards him as he startles [startles? what do you mean?](Startled? He still got surprised even he’s expecting Kanda to chase him. That’s how scary Kanda is. -_-) and make his advance.

"I was joking! And it's your job to watch me right? You don't have a choice but follow me!" The boy explains as he runs. He turns a corner tailing Reever and the others but he bumps into something and falls on his back. He quickly looks in front of him and see Allen's back. Kanda stops behind him also curious why they all had stopped.

Then a mechanical hysterical laugh breaks the silence. Komurin X is blocking the hallway with Komui himself.

"Reever-san!" The white haired Exorcist calls to the group of Scientist lying unconscious on the ground. He is covered with a purple jelly-like substance sticking around his body along with the other victims; all of them have a grimace expression on their face like they fainted out of disgust.

The Chief Komui Lee is proudly grinning at the sight of his work; his eyes are hidden by his framed eye glasses. Beside him is Komurin X, a humanoid formed robot about a foot taller than him, it has slimmer body than the last Komurin Lavi saw. The exterior design is more detailed and has accessories, a battle suit that has a large X, the Roman numeral for ten, on its chest.

"Let me introduce to you my latest work of art! Komurin X was originally made to help in producing of Exorcist uniforms. But I have decided to add some extra features to complete its perfection." He explains in glee a blush showing on his cheek. Then a dark Aura floats over him. "Thanks to some  _certain_ Exorcists and an Akuma I can test those extra features."

Allen and Lavi shiver at the man's words. "Ah.. Komui-san-" The cursed Exorcist started but stops at Komui's interjection.

"Shut up! You stole my precious Lenalee's smile! And pervertedly held her hands!"

"Brother!" Lenalee exclaims as a flash of red raises on her cheeks. "Stop this! You misunderstood everything!"

Allen also feels embarrassed by what Komui said though a small vein pops on his forehead. "Pe-perverted?"

"No, Lenalee! You're being manipulated! I don't know but maybe that little Akuma has that kind of ability." He points at Lavi accusingly.

"What!" Lavi shouts defensively. "You're-! Crazy!" That is all he could manage to say; Komui's tantrums are now really getting in his nerves.

"And you!" The Chief stares at Kanda; the side of his lips is twitching as if he is torn between badmouthing the Japanese teen and to just shut his mouth, but it's too late when he blurts the wrong decision. "You think you're more beautiful than my Lenalee-chan!" He screams with his eyes shut.

Everybody's moods change into dread and shock, except for two. Komui who seems to be proud of what he said and Kanda, who's trembling in rage, an evil aura is steaming from him.

"Komui Lee! Today you're gonna lose your freaking head!" Kanda growls as he lunges himself to the Chinese man that scrambles behind his invention. Lenalee and Lavi rush to stop Kanda. They know how serious he is on killing the man. Lavi grabs his left leg while Lenalee on his right arm stopping his Mugen from slicing her brother.

"Kanda, calm down!"

"Stop it, Yu!"

"Let me go! Someone has to teach him a lesson! Cutting off a few limbs would do!" The man in rage struggles to move forward almost dragging the two. The three only stop their argument when Komurin X points the canon attached to his forearm on them. Komui graces them with his evil grin.

"Fire!"

The missile could have hit them if Allen hadn't caught the fire head on protected by his Crown Clown. White smoke emerges at from the small explosion but enough to cover the cursed Exorcist. "Something's not right." He says calmly. "You're acting weird Komui, you even tried to hit them including Lenalee." He adds as the smoke disperses. "The Komui we know would never do that!" 

Allen stands bravely by his friends facing Komurin X and its master. But his eagerness falters hearing a poorly suppressed snicker behind him. He turns to his friends and sees how Lavi burst from his snickers to a laughing fit while Lenalee tried so hard not to laugh and Kanda only shows a disgust look over him. With frowned brows Allen looks down on himself and turns pale as his hair.

"Ahahaha..Bbbrrhaha!" Lavi can't stop laughing, tears already at the edge of his blue eyes. "Allen it suits you!"

Allen is still stunned in shock. He is now wearing an old design of Exorcist uniform, black with silver linings though the problem is it wasn't his but Lenalee's. He holds his skirt and pulls it down as if it would cover more than it has. "How!" His face is all red. "And shut up Lavi!"

"As I said it helps manufacture Exorcist uniform and by adding the 'fitting feature' it has been more convenient." Komui explains with hand gestures full of excitement. "Now let me give you another one! Fire!" He quickly adds changing his mood. [....... Charmie.., you are too fucking evil *hagis* -(^3^)-](*bows head* I’m evil XD)

Komurin X shoots towards Allen manages to dodge knowing that Lavi and the others would do the same, but this time the missile hits the floor without doing any tricks. The machine continues to shoot everyone in its sight. Lavi forgets his glee seeing Allen in that uniform when Komurin X chases him.

"Damn it! This skirt is too short!" The white haired Exorcist growls gritting his teeth as he makes his land on the ground. Good thing his boots didn't changed into heeled shoes. He looks around and finds Lavi reaching the end of the hallway being chased by the robot. But Allen foresees the danger for the unconscious Scientists lying on the ground. "Lenalee, could you take care of Reever-san and the others?"

The female Exorcist nods and looks at Allen's eyes. "I'll get to you guys later." She says before she starts moving.

Meanwhile, (Meaning,[?]) Kanda get his hands on Komui cornering the man. "Now you're going to pay!" Kanda smirks as he swings his Mugen in front of the man who squeaks in fear.

"I-I think you shouldn't be wasting your time with me." The man discloses as he regains his composure. Kanda's threatening eyes twitches with what he heard. Seeing the Samurai's reaction is enough for Komui to take back the control of the situation. "My Komurin has special feature in handling Akuma." His eye glasses glint as he speaks.

 

Lavi yells as he runs and turns to another hallway; Komurin X on his tails just a few paces away. Though what made him scream are not the missiles that it lunches to him but the way it follows him. It's crawling like a lizard despite of its humanoid form.

_'What's wrong with it!'_  His mind screams in disgust.

He is now quite far from the Cafeteria. At first he just runs in panic with no direction, but now he plans to lead the robot to a wider place to help Allen and Kanda to destroy it, though what bothers him is that none of his friends are following him. He's alone with it. Lavi turns his head to look back at the creepy Komurin, unbeknownst to him that it was scanning his head. From the Komurin X's view, a black inverted star was confirmed on Lavi's forehead.

"CODE RED! CODE RED! CODE RED!" It streams before its armor shifts and reforms, now it's hat extends to cover the half of its face like a visor.

"Battle Mode! Eliminate Akuma!"

"Ehhh?" Lavi exclaims as Komurin jumps to tackle him. Hadn't Lavi skipped by the last second, it would have grabbed his ankle, though the robot doesn't stop crawling wildly. A missile is shot, missing Lavi, and explodes ahead of him, forcing him to stop. It's too late for the redhead to react when he feels an impact on his back sending him forward and fall on the floor.

"That hurts!" He complains as he tries to stand. "What the-?" He lifts his right hand and sees a lump of purple slime sticking on to his skin, and notices that he is already covered with it. He tries to wipe off the weird substance but it only glues to him even more. "Damn!"

"Nyahaha. You won't escape me!" A creepy mechanical voice sneers behind the boy. Lavi turns to see Komurin X as it starts a chainsaw on its hand. The machine screeches around the hall, the redhead struggles in panic; he is stuck.

"Lavi!" A glint of light blinds the boy for a second and he hears a crash. Lavi squints in front of him before opening his eyes, and sees the backside of a short skirt and thin, shapely legs wrapped in boots.

"Thanks, Lena." He quickly says.

"It's _Allen_." The white haired Exorcist says darkly in a low tone. 

"Ah- sorry." He apologies with a grin that turns to grimace. He is not sure if he should laugh or pity Allen in that uniform. But one thing is clear Allen still looks good in it. Lavi then notices that he has indeed lead Komurin X in a large hall. This hall was used for ceremonies and gatherings such as funeral and seminars. At the further end of the hall lies Komurin X stirring and fixing its damaged parts.

"Stay right there Lavi, I'll destroy that useless robot." The Exorcist says; his eyes not leaving the enemy. It has been a long time since Lavi saw that determination from his friend. "I'm gonna crush it into pieces for humiliating me!" Allen turns to his evil mode expression and Lavi stuns by the large dark aura overflowing from his friend. 

"S-sure Allen."

Without a word Allen swiftly dashes toward the robot using Crown Clown; his left hand in its Clown Edge form. He swipes the enemy with his razor sharp claws but Komurin X dodges with a single step. After continuously attacking the freaking robot Allen doesn't even land a single scratch to it. Lavi can't believe what he is seeing.

"Fight seriously, Beans Sprout!" The boy's temper finally snaps. "Use your damn sword!" [HEY!! Why is Lavi allowed to say that???] (Well.. He is mad because Allen is not fighting seriously using his Clown Edge instead of his Sword. [If he use his sword it will leave him with one arm to use, and he will not be able to hold down his skirt unlike if he uses Clown Edge.])

"I can't!" Allen blurts irritated. On the other hand Lavi can see why Allen couldn't fight properly. "If I use my arm as a sword I won't be able to hold down this stupid skirt! And don't call me that!" He says while attacking with his right hand holding his skirt. A flash of red paints his cheeks in embarrassment. Komurin X seems to know the weakness of the teenage boy for in one instance it ducks and blows Allen with an air cannon coming from its mouth. Allen flies backward ungracefully, much more concerned about his skirt than his landing.

Lavi watches with a deadpan expression, but inside him he is so amused.

"Kya-!" Allen's luck fails him again when he steps and slips on a slime courtesy of the robot. With a loud thud he found himself on the ground. [kya?](fufufu girly squeal)

"Allen!" The redhead exclaims. Komurin X wastes no time and showers Allen with bullets. That is the cruelest act of all Komurin he had ever seen. He couldn't imagine how his friend had dealt with the robots version V to IX when while he was gone. [kya??](Is ‘kya’ too much for Allen to say?)

A large mushroom shaped cloud of rainbow colored smoke emerges from the Exorcist. In a few seconds it reveals Allen's state. He is dazed, Lavi notes; and his body turns into a large round ball that could stand on the ground by its own because of the multiple clothes being forced for him to wear. The only parts of Allen's body that he could still identify are his head, hands and feet.

"I-I can't b-breath.." The only thing the white haired Exorcist can say before he passed out.

Lavi's jaw drops at the sight and he shrieks as the robot twist its head to him 360 degrees with a malicious grin.

_'I'm dead.'_  

~~~~~~~

Lenalee has managed to wake Chief Director Reever that who helps her attend to the other victims of Komurin X. Reever has analyzed that the purple slime has chemicals that induces hallucination to the person it affects by only taking its scent.

"Lenalee we can take it from here." Reever says as he hauls another unconscious Finder in a stretcher with a Nurse. "Go stop Komurin X!"

They are still in the hallway but most of the people that are hiding are now helping the victims. Finders, Cooks, Scientists and Helpers are brought together to support each other. That's how Lenalee's family works and she won't let it get destroyed like how she and her friends had promised just a few minutes ago; be it by the hands of Noah or Komurin X.

She nods vigorously at the Scientist and starts on her heels toward her friends.

~~~~~~

The Japanese Exorcist turns to another corner in full speed following the tracks of Komurin X. Kanda feels guilt creeping in his guts, no matter how he looks at it, he discarded that stupid rabbit to chase Komui due to his rage. And now that Komui had made him realize; he's irking to get back on the boy's side. Kanda has been known for doing his duty as an Exorcist; kill Akuma, fight Noah and go on missions. He followed the rules strictly even he have to dismay other people; the very reason why some Finders hates him. [what? tense and grammar is all jumbled]

And what irritates him more is the way how Komui reminded him of his job to watch the boy. It's the same with how Tyki had made him scramble to the redhead's side just a few days ago, by saying that the redhead is in danger. He scoffs at the thought as he turns the last corner heading to the large hall.

He quickly scans the place when he gets a good view. He spots Allen lying unconscious on the floor at the left side of the hall, and finally he finds Komurin X standing at the right side, its back at him.

"Found you!" He growls under his breath; his finger runs on the blade of his sword followed by the glowing energy of his Innocence.

"First Illusion: Netherworld Insects." He swings his sword at the call of the attack releasing a swarm of supernatural creatures borne to devour his enemy. Komurin X jumps to avoid the lunging creatures, which some fail to turn quickly. It's too late for Kanda to see that Lavi was in front of the robot where the first batch of his attack was directed. 

"No! Yu-!" Lavi can't finish his words as a batch of the supernatural insects hits him. 

Kanda's heart skips a beat at the sight. He never thought that he'd be the one who would kill the Akuma that he was supposed to protect. It's the dumbest mission failure ever. Letting his guard down for a second; Komorin X maneuvers in the air and releases a bullet towards the Japanese Exorcist which connects with no haste.

A cloud of pink smoke covers Kanda after the small explosion. "Nyahaha! Execution Complete!" Komurin X declares when he lands on the ground. Then a secret door behind the robot suddenly opens and a man with dark hair emerges from the supposedly walls a moment ago.

"Well done Komurin X! Today we'll mark this day as the day of our VICTORY!" The Branch Chief of the Church of the Black Order announces proudly before his invention.

"The greatness is yours, master!"

"Allen!" Lenalee's voice echoes as she enter the hall; concern written all over her face. Komui and his robot turn to see the girl.

"Brother? Where's Allen-" Her words trail off after seeing her friend's condition. Allen is dead unconscious as Timcampy tries to wake him by scratching his head. Lavi's head hangs on his shoulder also unconscious; the dried substance holding him on a sitting position. Kanda on the other hand looks like he's sleeping as he lay on the floor peacefully, though Lenalee barely overlooks the fact that Kanda is wearing a beautiful ball gown instead of his uniform. She feels dread flushing over her body.

Clutching her fist beside her legs she suppresses an oncoming rage. These are her friends, this morning they had promised to fight alongside with her, to be together until the end. But because of such a certain robot made by a certain person everything is ruined. All threads of patience are now gone.

"Lenalee-chan…" Komui backs off sensing his sister's anger. "I did all of these to protect you!"

"No brother, this will end here and now." She says in low tone. Without another word, her dark boots activate on her heels sending a gust air pressure around her.

"No! You can't destroy my Komurin!" The supervisor whines. Lenalee jumps in the air, ready to eliminate the evil machine, her eyes filled with killing intent. "Oh no you don't! Komurin X! FIRE!" The Chief shrieks pointing at Lenalee. Komurin X quickly aims at Lenalee but its speed doesn't match with the Exorcist's. A metal cutting sound rings in the place. Lenalee cuts through the robot with her powerful kick and leaves it to explode.

"Ahh! How dare you-" Komui says as he stomps on the ground when a forceful smack hits him on his neck. The Supervisor falls on the floor unconscious. A flash of worry runs on Lenalee's face despite the irritation she is suffering towards her brother. Not long before it was replaced by confusion and awe as she looks at the person behind her brother.

"I won't tolerate this kind of act against my Lenalee."

"Brother?" She exclaims in disbelief. Another Komui is standing in front of her other than the Komui lying on the floor. The man reaches her and gives her a tight hug.

"I'm sorry! Are you alright!?" He says pulling himself off from the still confused Exorcist.

"If you are my brother, then who is this?" She asks looking down at the person below.

"It was a Komui Prototype." Reever suddenly joins their conversation. That's when Lenalee realizes that the Scientists and Finders are already on their way to help her friends. Johnny, Jiji and another Scientist are snipping Allen's outer clothes to let him out of the bundle while another group is already treating Lavi, and breaking him out of the dried substance and a group of Finders are huddled around Kanda. She casts her gaze to her brother. "Prototype?"

"You see... Big Brother is worried about you. I noticed that you've been lonely these past few days. I want to make you happy." Komui confesses sweetly to his younger sister.

"So I made a prototype based on myself as a brother for you. Two brothers are better than one. That way you'll be happy!" He concludes like it's the most obvious thing in the world, a smile tugged on his lips. 

"You just doubled the trouble." Reever scoffs to himself.

"But my Komui P1 is not yet perfect; I have to fix him first." A sparkle twinkles in his eyes at the out loud thought.

"No, brother you don't have to. One is enough, you are my only brother." Lenalee cuts off Komui and gives her loveliest smile to him that makes him cry in happiness.

"Aww Lenalee!" Another bear hug envelopes Lenalee.

_'Thanks Lenalee you've made our job easier!'_  Reevers thinks behind the siblings.

Meanwhile the Finders around Kanda are pushing each other.

"You wake him up." A middle age man says tapping the guy beside him.

"Why me? I still want to live!" Another says lifting his hand on the air in surrender. They both share a meaningful look in the eye and slowly look down at the still sleeping Exorcist. Both their cheeks flush at the sight. Kanda is wearing a beautiful pink ball gown as he sleeps; his hair draped over his shoulders like a princess. 

"For sure he'll kill someone if the wakes up like this." Another comments in a neutral tone but can't hide the blood rushing on his cheeks.

"But someone has to!"

"Let's undress him before he wakes-" The suggestion is cut short by a grinding fist to the speaker’s face that sends him away for a few meters bouncing roughly on the floor.

Everyone freezes on their feet at the sudden attack as they watches where the poor Finder landed. They all feel a vicious glare from behind them when they heard a series of slicing sound. Slowly turning to the source of the sound they see what they expect. Kanda stands before them emitting a deadly aura with Mugen on his hand the ball gown shredded to pieces at his feet.

"What are you looking at?" The samurai growls with a low voice.

"No-nothing!"

"We didn't see anything." They all deny stuttering as most of them make their way out to his sight. Kanda sheathes his sword and quickly twists his head over his shoulder to find the redhead when he remembers hitting him with his Innocence.

Spotting the location of the boy, Kanda bolts to the bunch of Scientists around him.

"Is he alright?" He blurts almost in panic pushing aside one of the Scientists. They all look at the Japanese Exorcist in surprise from his sudden display of worry. Kanda feels a bit embarrassed but maintains his hardened expression. He sees that Lavi is still partly stuck on the floor by the weird substance as another helper scrapes the remaining dried substance that is stuck to the boy.

"I'm fine, Yu. I'm not that weak." Lavi grins at him. Kanda doesn't let his relief be apparent to them, instead, he snorts and leaves them without a word.

"I think this is the last one." Johnny says as he starts to unbutton Allen's shirt. "I hope he'll wake up soo- Ahkk!" He almost has a heart attack when a hand suddenly grasps his wrist only to find that it was Allen's.

"I'm okay, Johnny." Allen says in monotonic way as he releases his grip. The white haired Exorcist sits calmly and looks at his limbs. He sighs in relief when he sees he is wearing dress pants.

"Are you sure Allen?" Johnny frowns at Allen.

"Yes, I am." Allen gives a reassuring smile to his friend though the corner of his lips still quivers. _'I can't let them see what I'm wearing under these clothes.'_ He thinks.

"That's the last of it." The Scientist assisting Lavi declares as he wipes his sweat on from his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Thanks Kevin-san." Lavi replies standing and brushing off dirt on his shorts. Kevin rests his hand on the boy's head with a smile.

"If you feel something odd don't hesitate to go to the Infirmary. We can't tell if there's a side effect from these chemicals. Especially since it was our Branch Chief that made them." He says lastly before he leaves.

The man's last words bother Lavi. It frightens him; his day did really change today. But if it'll be like this every day he would never wish for it again. It was fun seeing his friends and the people in the Order to loosen up for some time, but it got dangerous. Komurin's rampage is fun to watch only if he is not the victim. He sighs wishing nothing would happen to his body. He heard a flapping sound and finds the blue golem flying above his head. Lavi snorts at the golem; he is now developing an uncontrollable annoyance to the particular thing. The golem flies closer to him as if worried for him, but Lavi is not taken by the act. (He doesn’t buy it.) 

"What?" He asks the golem with a disgruntled look. "You traitor! Shoo! Shoo! Leave me alone, I don't need you!" The redhead sneers backing away from the golem. It seems that the golem is hurt as it jolts in the air from Lavi's words but the boy is not sure whether it's real or his mind is just making it look like that. They fall into a staring contest for a moment when until they hear Reever's nagging.

"Stop him!" He yells as he and other staffs grab Komui by his waist. They all fall on the ground.

"Let me go! I still need to fix Komui P1!" The Chinese man wails as he struggles to stand.

"Didn't you heard what Lenalee said? She doesn't want your marionette!" Reever continues.

"But-" Komui considers it holding his breath that turns to a long sigh accepting his younger sister's wish. "Okay, I won't do it." He finally says in defeat.

Everyone sighs in relief, another threat to their work and lives is stopped before it's too late. They are all full handed dealing with the holy war; they can't have a Komui robot to add in their problems.

"Though I was wondering why Komui P1 suddenly went berserk." He muses loudly standing on his feet. Everyone stiffens at his statement.

The blue golem, Aoi steals Lavi's attention with a ping sound that suggests an idea. Lavi stares with furrowed brows, the golem almost smirks in Lavi's eyes though he doesn't know how it could be, given that it has the same features as a normal golem would, unlike Tim. Aoi flies to Komui without warning, leaving the redhead to himself as he follows it with wide eyes.

The Supervisor snaps his head to the floating golem in front of him. Aoi clicks and a holographic screen appears and shows the scene earlier in the cafeteria, the scene that caused the rampage of Komui P1. All of them hold their breath as Komui finishes watching the record.

"So that's how it was." The man of attention states calmly as his hand touches his eye glasses. "Looks like I can't do anything about it." He pulls a remote from his breast pocket with single red button.

"THIS IS FOR STEALING MY LENALEE'S SMILE!" He screams landing his index finger to the button.

"It should have been me who earned it!" He whines as tears flow down on his cheeks exaggeratedly. An explosion erupts behind him sending debris of the supposed to be walls just a moment ago. Everyone panics and runs wildly away from the crater. Another Komurin emerges from the smoke of dust and its larger than Komurin X. A roman number eleven is written on its chest.

"No way!" Lavi exclaims seeing where this situation leads. Aoi flies over him, and he feels an evil smirk coming from the golem. "Why you little-" He stops gritting his teeth and runs to catch the cunning little thing as everyone scatters to safety while others fights the robot.

The Church of the Black Order faces damage within the Head Quarters caused by its own Branch Chief. Thankfully the KomurinXI is destroyed by Allen Walker before it turns the whole place into rubble. Everyone seems to forget the holy war, forget the faith they will face when the final battle starts. Somehow the burden they have is lifted for a moment, though replaced by stress, Lavi still honestly enjoys that the day.

 


	21. Chapter 21

It is a gray afternoon when a group of hooded people arrives at a small town in the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia. The community is residing near the renowned mountains where an ethnic tribe are rumored to be still existing. The town is simple and peaceful; most of the locals are smiling and greeting with each other despite the steady drizzle bestowed by the sky. They don't seem to notice the group lurking in the town among them. They were used to tourists and researchers to come and go from time to time all for confirming the existence of the old tribe in the mountains; a few outsiders like them will not bother the town.

 

"Atchiw!" A sneeze escapes from one member of the group as they walk. "Excuse me." He suddenly stops wiping his face with the back of his hand.

 

"Oi, stop slacking off Bean Sprout." One of them turns to him with a scowl.

 

"I'm not." The other boy deadpanned. They are four in the group. They are all wearing dark colored hoods over their Exorcist uniform that covers up to their ankles except for the smallest member of the group who wears a formal suit underneath.

 

"Whoa? Are you sure old man?" The smallest exclaims in excitement that takes the attention of his companions.

 

They see the red haired boy talking to an old man in front of an antique shop a few yards away from them. The conversation continues as they neared the two. The old man gives an approving nod to the small child which smiles back at him but the conversation is cut off as a knuckle viciously hits the boy's head. The old man quickly decides to get inside of the shop after seeing the brutal scene and Kanda's piercing glare.

 

"Ouch!" The boy yelps as he clutches his burning skull. "Yu! What was that for?"

 

"Put your freaking hood up Rabbit!" Yu Kanda bares his teeth as he says those words. The boy lightens up a bit as he realizes his mistake. He suddenly feels someone put the hood over his head. Turning up he see their female companion Lenalee Lee. "You don't have to do that Kanda." She said resting her hands on the redhead's shoulder.

 

"What did you find out Lavi?" The gentler teen Allen Walker, asks with interest; a golden golem is poking under his hood. Lavi feels a rush on his cheeks by just thinking of what the old man had said. "Ah, it’s not really related to our mission." He said scratching the back of his head and trying not to look in Allen's eyes. "It’s about the tribe that leaves in the mountains, he said that they are real and he saw them with his own eyes." His gaze then goes to the horizon where the mountains are.

 

His friends can clearly hear the excitement in his voice despite his effort to suppress it. "I wanted to record that tribe ever since old panda told me about them." He muses as a small smile forms on his lips.

 

"But that is still not important right now. We have mission to do!" He said in an enthusiastic demeanor as he walk pass the three Exorcists with the biggest steps he could manage to make. The three Exorcist shares a meaningful look to each other before they followed the redhead.

 

The Science Department had found a way to identify the most probable location the Noah would held the next ritual. It was based on the result of the research they held in the cave and in other areas which the occurrence of the same activity was confirmed. The data reveals that those specific areas emit a particular frequency caused by a dimensional disruption. They also had concluded that these areas were gates to a dimension that were not linked to the Ark which is why a ritual must be held to open them.

 

The team's mission is to bring Allen to the marked area where a possible ritual will be held by the Noah to set up an Ark portal. In this way they could quickly sneak in the place if something happens. And by the word 'sneak' means no one should know that the Order had found the place, it is the reason why the group wears the hoods and coats to conceal their identity. They have to climb the mountains tonight with the help of the markings the Finder had left for them to follow.

 

The snow starts to fall when they reached the half of their trek to the mountain and the snow covering the ground are getting thicker as they accent. With the help of the lantern specially made by the Order's Scientists they managed to climb effectively. Though Lavi had a hard time walking on the snow, his legs shoot deep in the white bed every time he takes a step. He misses the long legs he had when he was still alive. He was the one leading the team a while ago but now he is the last in line.

 

Another snow trapped his legs on his step. He tugs it with little effort to free them, with a sigh he looks ahead of him. He sees his friends walking away from him. He set his eyes to them one by one. Yu, Allen, and Lenalee. The people he wants to protect from the grasp of the holy war.

 

Lavi had seen life and death from wars as a Bookman apprentice for as long as he can remember. He had spent his life in the sides like a shadow without emotion.

 

But now he holds something that he could say his own.

 

He feels selfish.

 

He wanted to do something, something that he should have done when he had chance in those previous wars he had recorded. It was to help. Tragedy should have been avoided if he tried to help them; those people he met and died might have been saved. It took him 49 alias and death itself to realize this.

 

And what makes him more feel selfish is because he chose this war, the war that involves his friends. His conscience was bugging him why he had abandoned his previous 48 persona. _ 'Because Lavi is selfish’  _ he tells to himself. It’s like a dying wish, to at least do something to fix himself, to at least be a human for once in his life, even now that he is dead. Lavi was secretly thankful that he had this chance to redeem his sins even by being an Akuma.

 

Lavi feels Aoi wriggles inside his coat. He is keeping him hidden to conceal their identity, only Exorcist has this kind of device in the world. He pulls his coat to peek at the blue golem that seems to be sleeping.

 

"Lavi?" Lenalee calls his name. Lavi put aside his sentiments, and continues to walk. "Ah- Wait for me." A small smile tugs on his lips as he runs to his friends.

 

~~~~~

 

They swiftly found the marked area, pretty fast for what Lavi have expected. It was located between the tall rocks and cluster of pine trees. Allen set up the Ark without effort, it just took him a quiet whisper and the floor glowed, a number twenty seven appears and vanished. They are not going to use this portal to go back to the head quarters they don't want to attract the Noah with its energy like how Allen have identified the portal. The snow stops falling when they decide to go back in the local area.

 

The group is heading to the town when Lavi notices that Allen and Kanda are going straight to the forest, busy bickering with each other.

 

"Oi.. Allen, where are you going?" Lavi shouts following the two. They both turn on the boy, Allen smiling while Kanda in his usual grumpy mood. "That's not the way back to the town." The redhead continues reaching the two with a frown on his face.

 

"We're going to find the tribe you were talking about." The cursed Exorcist smiles wider as he speaks.

 

"Eh?" Lavi is not sure of what he just heard.

 

"Since we've finished our mission quite fast, we could spare sometime checking on the tribe you wanted to see." Allen says brightly.

 

"B-But-" The boy stutter.

 

"It's okay Lavi we had talk about it." Lenalee gives him a reassuring smile. Lavi feels fired up, his stomach fills with excitement and he can't hide the flush running on his cheeks and his grin is threatening to split on his face.

 

"Stop being a kid and let's get this done." Kanda says with a huff crossing his arms over his chest.

 

"Yes! Let's go!" The redhead exclaims with delight, not holding back his mirth.

 

The boy leads the team to their next destination. To research about the tribe was the first thing Lavi did when he heard where their mission will be. He really had hoped to pass by that tribe, even by coincidence. The group had to walk on a steep side of the mountains to reach the rumored location of the ethnic group.

 

"It should be somewhere down this cliff." Lavi mumbles to himself eyes squinting at the view below. His friends stand behind him. "Lavi, I think I saw something." Lenalee says pointing downright which is the northern part of the mountain. The redhead quickly goes to her side and looks at the area. A gleam of light can be seen, like a campfire in the middle of the snow a mile away from them. "Let's check it out." Allen suggests as he starts to walk to find a safe path going down, Lenalee follows behind him. Lavi is about to turn around when he notices something.

 

"Shit! Allen!" The boy curses spinning to his comrades. Allen notices at the same time as the redhead did; his Innocence invocate in a blink of an eye. Three Level 4 Akuma flush towards them with incredible speed. Lenalee and Kanda activate their Innocence just in time as the three hideous creatures’ lands on the ground sputtering snow on their faces.

 

"Ehehehe." The giggles of the angel like demon can be heard. An innocent smile spits on its face. "It's an ambush!" Kanda hisses more to himself holding Mugen tightly. The three Akuma glows in the night, the halo and wings could deceive any person to think they are angels, but not the Exorcist. These creatures are evil and dangerous as how much their appearance tries to deceive people.

 

"Exorcist? We haven't seen one for a while.." Another says as it tilting its head curiously. "Let's play with them!" The third one almost jumps stepping forward. Lenalee steps back but her Dark Boots flares with Innocence energy. _ 'I won't let you hurt my friends.' _ She thinks glaring at the Akuma before her.

 

"We don't have time to play." Allen snarls sending his Clown Belt to pierce one of the demons. The white haired Exorcist can't take their presence. He can smell the blood lust fuming from their bodies and blood itself.

 

_ 'They had recently killed somebody.' _ Allen bites his cheeks, displeased as the Akuma dodges his attack. Lenalee and Kanda moves to fight. Kanda jumps over the Akuma and slash it down with his Mugen. Sparks of energy flashes as the impact of the sword with the Akuma’s crossed arms resounds.The sword bounces back from the hardness of the demon’s skin. Though Kanda doesn't stop attacking and increases his power to defeat the Level 4. Meanwhile Lenalee is engaged in an air battle with the third Level 4 gliding in the dark sky over them. Strikes and kicks vibrate in the air through the ground showing how powerful the female Exorcist is. Allen continues to fight his opponent with his sword of exorcism. Level 4 Akuma are invincible in speed and power but they are not indestructible.

 

Lavi watches his comrades as they fight. He freezes on his feet; his hands are trembling as he tries to hold his arms. "Why?" He whispers. His eyes never leave the battle in front of him. He feels shiver runs through his spine an unsettling fear washes over him causing him to panic.  _ 'Why do I feel like.. this?'  _ He thinks scanning his surroundings. He heard a screeching sound of metal being cut. Turning to its source he sees Kanda slicing the Akuma. Another scream and he sees Allen digging his sword in the stomach of his opponent. _ 'Is it because of the Akuma?'  _ Lavi continues to analyze even he is starting to lose his balance because of the tinge of dread crawling on his skin.

 

Something smashes not far from his right as the snow burst away wildly. Lavi looks at the thing that fell and saw the Level 4 Lenalee was fighting crumpled in bad shape. The redhead didn't know how his feature changes in just a few seconds. His brows furrows in confusion, bead of sweat runs down his temples and his lip curls in disgust. He clutches onto his arms even tighter at the sight. _ 'No! It’s not them.'  _ He figures.

 

"Lavi?" Lenalee's voice pulled him from his thoughts. He lifts his gaze to the female Exorcist standing in front of the half dead demon. The girl's expression is the complete opposite of what the boy had. A flash of worry is apparent but the care and calmness are present as she addresses the redhead. Lavi's gaze trails on his friend; from her face, her uniform down, until it falls to it.

 

"That was it." He says weakly wearing an unreadable expression. He is looking at the glowing light on Lenalee's boots.

 

"I- I hate Innocence!!" A scream filled the area, as the Akuma tackles Lenalee on the ground.

 

"Lenalee!" Allen shouts from the corner of the ground by the edge of the cliff, letting his guard down the Akuma he’s fighting with shoots a ball of energy down to Lenalee. Strangled by the Akuma she quickly kicks on the ground and takes the demon up in the sky.

 

It's too late when they realize that Lavi hadn't moved from his spot. The beam strikes on the ground destroying the cliff's edge. Kanda curses at the sight as he see Lavi helplessly falls among the rocks and snow down to the bottom of the cliff but he couldn't act because the Akuma he is fighting with suddenly hurls over and pins him to the ground knocking the air out of his lungs.

 

"Shit!" He hisses after recovering his breath. A feral grin greets him as he look over his enemy. The excuse for a smile spreads wildly, full of malice and contempt. Its teeth grind in unbearable excitement. Kanda is shocked for a moment before he gets hold of himself. Using the small space between him and the spiteful creature, he positions his sword and stabs it forcefully.

 

It jerks back with a painful scream. The blue haired Exorcist gets back on his feet and follows it with another slash that completely hit the Akuma. A large cut over its chest down to its thigh is clearly visible as it is thrown by the power of attack. Kanda doesn't bother to spare a glance at the Level 4; his attention quickly spins back to the cliff.

 

The ground Lavi was on a few seconds ago was no longer there and he couldn't see the end of the cliff from the darkness of the night. He sighs with a scowl and his brows furrows; holding the hilt of his sword ever so tightly. He lost the Baka Usagi. He believes that Lavi can take care of himself, but the glimpse he had before the redhead fall makes him anxious. He looked distracted. The crease on his brows deepens as he think.

 

"He.. He." The Level 4 splayed on the ground exhales a pitiful laugh as it gasp for air its eyes are wide from pain. Kanda turns to see the Akuma, its large wound still glows with Innocence energy. "You won'.. save, im." It continues between swallows and gasp before it laughed hysterically then it explodes. Kanda tensed from what the Demon's last words, this might not just be an ambush but also a trap.

  
  



	22. Chapter 22

"I- I hate Innocence!"

The scream rings loud in Lavi's ears as the Akuma lurches toward his friend. Everything seems to blur in his senses, he couldn't see if Lenalee fights back; he couldn't tell who is screaming and couldn't feel anything but a cold breeze seeping in his head. A loud high pitched sound whistles through his brain that makes him cringe and close his eyes. Then something blow up next to him. It happens really fast as the earth crumbles beneath him, breaking, stumbling and everything is claimed by the gravity. He falls deep in the darkness.

Lavi wakes up from the cold metal bumping on his forehead. With a crinkled brow he opens his eyes to see the navy blue golem flying above him. As soon as the golem notices its master's reaction it flies back to the redhead and buried itself on his neck. Lavi feel dazed looking blankly in the sky as he lies on his back, he remembers what happened.

He still didn't know why, but it was the Innocence that caused him to panic before he fell from the cliff. He wants to know why, but couldn't find any rational reason other than him being an Akuma has that kind of reaction to Innocence. Though he still cannot conclude that yet given he hadn't confirmed it with other Akuma. But there is one thing he could assume.

He slowly rolls to his side trying to examine his body from injuries. Lavi sits with crossed legs and pulls Aoi from his collar that stares at him worriedly. "I'm fine.." The redhead says petting the golem. Though the boy doesn’t give a reassuring smile, just the neutral facial expression he had mastered long ago.

_ 'Innocence wants to destroy me.' _ He thinks as a prick in his heart downs to him, if he literally has one. It frustrates him, being the one who has been struggling to fit in this war to help the Church of the Black Order and to save his friends; yet Innocence won't accept his existence. It’s a natural response since Dark Matter and Innocence are two opposing power but Lavi can't stop himself from feeling hurt.

Aoi flies above the redhead which he follows with an empty gaze. The golem then without warning hurls downwards to his master, hitting him directly on his unguarded forehead. A good 'tok' is heard as Lavi falls back to the bed of snow. The hit is hard enough to make his skull to judder.

"Aahh. Damn! That huuurts!" He whines holding his forehead with both hands, his feet flails on the snow. Aoi on the other hand lands weakly beside him. That really wakes him up from his thoughts. He shouldn't be sulking here about something he couldn't understand he needs to go back to his friends.

"Right!" He sits upright and fetches the blue golem. "Thanks Aoi." Lavi says now with a soft smile. After seeing his master back to his old self, Aoi flies with renewed enthusiasm. Lavi chuckles to him as he stands. "Let's get moving."

~~~~~

Kanda sends another one of his sword Illusion technique to the Level 4 Akuma Allen had been fighting. It lands perfectly, crushing it to the brimming rocks. Allen follows it swiftly with the aid of his Crown Clown and swipes down his sword to finish the Akuma. The explosion flashes and sends debris all around them and follows by another flash in the sky. Lenalee lands smoothly beside Allen after eliminating the last Level 4.

"We have to find Lavi!" Lenalee says with a serious tone. The three of them exchange nods and move to go at the bottom of the cliff. Kanda is leading the way determined to retrieve the redhead.

~~~~~

The snow is thicker on the part where Lavi is walking compared to the path their group had taken. He's trying to find the way where his friend would come down from above. The darkness of the night is giving him a hard time on his walk and the fact that he doesn’t have a lamp just worsens the situation. His Akuma eyes could see better in the dark compared to human sight but it’s useless in long range distance.

"Aoi. Let's try once more." He waves a hand to the flying golem that nears to him. He had been trying to contact Allen and the others through their golem without success. The signal jams and all he could get are bad frequencies. With a sigh the redhead put down the communication.

They continue to walk for a few minutes when Lavi spots a figure not far away from them. He doesn't feel any Akuma around so he assumes it’s human.

"Allen?" He calls not sure if it is him. The figure also moves toward him, closing the distance. Lavi sees it clearly. A girl a bit taller than him wearing thick clothes with different pattern printed on it. She has a head bond and her boots was made of different material, it’s not leather he notes. Lavi is shocked as realization comes to him. The pattern is familiar to him; the girl is from the tribe he was trying to find. Lavi's demeanor suddenly brightens. The girl stops a few steps away from him a confused look are visible on her face as she observes Lavi.

"Ah.. Are you lost?" Lavi asks, finding his question a bit off. "Actually I'm lost." He continues as he scratches the back of his head giving a smile. The girl frowns at him and steps back. Lavi take this as a bad impression. "No. I won’t hurt you." He says softly pressing his hands to his chest. Lavi knows that their tribe has a unique language and gesture and attitude would help him to communicate with them.

The girl slowly nears to him and reaches for his left hand that he willingly gave. She tugs it and steps back. Lavi just blink as the girl repeats the action. "Do you want me to come with you?" He redhead asks as the girl pulls him more to follow her. After a few steps Lavi decides to go with the girl, assuming maybe he would get a better signal in her place and find more about the tribe.

They walk in a steady pace for a while and the girl never releases Lavi's hand while Aoi rests at the top of his hood. Lavi notices that they are heading to the north side of the mountain which where saw the flickering light when he was above the rocks. The girl had been silent ever since he followed her. And it’s getting really awkward.

"Umm. Hey what's your name? By the way my name is Lavi." He starts but the girl perfectly ignores him. Lavi just fall silent and turns to Aoi as he continues to walk. He couldn't clearly see the view ahead of them because of the fog and the starting blizzard. The wind is getting fiercer as they precede enough for Lavi to put Aoi inside of his coat.

The girl suddenly stops and Lavi almost bumps at her.

"Are we here?" The redhead asks; he squint his blue eyes to peer through the cloud of snow. The girl looks over her shoulder and cast a sad gaze to Lavi. She releases Lavi and lifts her right hand and point in front of them. Lavi couldn't understand her but he moves forward to see well.

He feels his gut twist as he smells a familiar scent hit him, he knows it before the view clears in front of him. The smell of faint smoke and burned flesh lingers around him while the thick stench of cooper floods to him. _ 'Blood _ ,’ is the first thing that comes from his mind.

Lavi gets all the details in his mind as he scans the supposed to be village. Burned down tents are all laid on the snow, some of it still glitter from the dying flames, under them are bodies of the people of the tribe that leaves traces of blood in the white snow, some ragged clothes filled with ash being harshly blown by the wind and a decapitated arm in shade of gray embedded by a series of black pentacles.

The redhead couldn't say a word he grits his teeth as his hand clenches in rage. It was a work of Akuma. "It was those Level 4!" He yells in rage. "Hey? Are you the only survivor?" He says turning back at the girl. But what he meets is a strong whip lashing him on his shoulder down to his body that sends him flying backwards and crash to the crumpled tent. Akuma blood oozes out from his small body as he lay on his back, eyes shut from the pain. His hand touches the ground beside him trying to stand. "D-damn it!" Lavi hisses lifting his injured body causing Aoi to fall from his blood soaked coat and rolls on the snow.

Before he could manage to have a good footing another swipe hit him. The crashing sound is muffled by the snow blizzard. Lavi don’t know what is hitting him; it is strong and clearly not an Akuma. His human body is literally being torn up by those attacks. If he won't manage to defend himself nothing will remain from his body. He forces his eyes to open and see the girl from the tribe staring down at him.

"Why won't you change to your true form?" She says with a hateful glare. "Akuma!" She retracts her right arm to throw another attack. It is the moment Lavi realizes that her hand was the whip itself. He shifts a second before the snow under him splatter as the attack lands. He hardens his skin with scales using the Dark Matter flowing inside his body as he distanced from the girl. He could feel the dip cut on his back and left shoulder. He curses internally about how much damage he has taken. He wouldn't let another scratch land on his 'skin' he can't afford to use another body as his host.

Using the Dark Matter; his skin turns darker as the inverted pentacle forms on his forehead. His blue eyes are now replaced by a dull gray and black. Lavi's wounds quivers as two white enormous snakes come out from it, one from his shoulder and another from his back. The twin snakes hovers above him before they settled beside demon boy.

"Who are you?" Lavi shouts at the girl inquisitively. The girl shifts her foot on the snow and faced Lavi. "You are still caught in my form are you?" She continues as her skin turns gray and her body grows to form a lady, dark hair in ponytail lays on her back, the piecing golden orbs never leaving her prey.

"Lulubell!" The redhead exclaims. The Noah of Lust smiles at him. Lavi stops himself from screaming 'STRIKE' with a heart shaped eyes, that he usually do when he see a beautiful lady. Lulubell is sure a fine lady but she is a Noah and Lavi had learned his lesson in the hard way when he stayed in the Noah's dungeons for three months.

"What do you want?" He asks under his breath still trying to shift his attention. The woman is wearing white shirt with vest, dress pants tightly hugging her legs and back boots covering her feet, Lavi didn't know when she had changed her clothes he’s too distracted from her transformation.

"The Earl said you were neglecting yourself, by not killing humans. I am here to lead you back to your fate." She says in a calm manner as she holds the whip with her other hand.

"What?" Lavi isn’t sure where Lulubell is leading on to.

"Do you know why people died here? It was because of you. I and those Akuma slaughter them because you care for them.”

The redhead couldn't react to what he just heard, his mind flies back to the scenarios that afternoon.  _ 'She might have heard of what I had said back in the town.' _

"It was you Lavi!" She yells swinging her arm enlarging the whips, it hits hard on the ground and the next swipe is aiming for the redhead. The large snake on the right blocks the attack using its body but the force is too strong it swayed and crashed with the other white snake. Lulubell whirls across them and reaches the boy without effort, her nails digging on his throat as she takes him down on the ground.

Lavi struggles to free himself, but the Noah of Lust is extremely strong for him, and Dark Matter won't affect her. "But don't worry I left some of them alive. Including the girl I copied." She says in her calm demeanor still crouching down on him, pinning him down by his neck.

"Kill them." Lulubell directs the command to Lavi.

~~~~~~

The snow crisps at Allen’s boots on his steps as he searches for Lavi. The rubbles of rock are slowly buried by the falling snow leaving no trace of Lavi's presence.

The snow began to fall as they reach the end of the cliff which only worsens their situation. They had tried to contact Lavi through their golems but they all failed. Kanda is getting impatient while Lenalee shows deep concern for their lost friend.  _ ‘We have to move.’ _ Allen thinks. Kanda told them what the dying words of the Akuma he fought were and they couldn’t help but be worried.

Allen takes a deep breath as he turns to look at the northern part of the mountains though he is not aware of its geographical location. Something catches his eyes in the falling snow as Timcanpy flies to its direction. "Tim? Where are you going? Wait!" He yells following the golem. Kanda and Lenalee see Tim's action and quickly join Allen to chase it.

 

Catching up with the golden golem they find Aoi flying with him. "Aoi!" Allen calls the golem. "Where is Lavi?" The blue golem rattles anxiously as it flies back to where it came from. Tim quickly comes with him. The group takes this as a pressing situation as they all hurry to follow the golem.


	23. Chapter 23

Blood

He had been familiar with its smell, its thickness, its warmth and the coldness it could do to the body of someone bleeding it. He knew them all from his line of work to firsthand experience.

A piercing sound echoes through Lavi's ears as cries floods after. "Stop!" He screams as another person falls on the ground. It’s the third person who had to die because of him. Lulubell gives a wicked smile as she looks over to the helpless Akuma. "Do it Lavi." She extends a hand to the redhead. The Noah of Lust stands beside the dead bodies of the tribe members. Five others are squeezing themselves in the corner of a partly destroyed tent terrified and unable to fight. They are women and children who couldn’t do anything but hug each other as they try to hide from the death’s grip. Desperate pleading, and cries fills Lavi's ears but he can't do anything to stop it.

Lulubell had been killing them for him, he had refused the Noah's order to kill those human, but that didn't stop her. She killed them telling that it was Lavi's fault why they had to suffer this hell. She kept the redhead Akuma restrained by transfixing him on the ground using a Dark Matter Lance sticking down from his shoulder out through his chest to the ground. Lulubell was not so pleased to receive rejection from an Akuma.

"Please stop." Lavi murmurs, his head hangs on his shoulder helplessly. He doesn't want to see another dead person because of him. "Then kill them with your own hands." Lulubell reasons as she walks towards the boy. She crouches in front of him and pats the boy's red hair before reaching to his chin and lifts it to face her. Lavi looks broken, his eyes are dull, and his feature reflects despondence, the same face she saw when the Noah had him more than three months ago, wounded and betrayed.

Her lips curves into a small smile, she can't hide the excitement from seeing her plan run so smooth. She has the boy back in her game. Hiding her satisfaction she goes back on her calm manner. "Or I'll take the girl next."

Lavi seems to react on the Noah's statement. Lulubell motions to stand as Lavi starts to speak. "No don't kill them.." The boy grits his teeth he doesn’t know what to do. The Noah of Lust watches him in his struggle for a moment before she speaks. "You know that I won't stop, you're pleading is useless just like before no one will save you."

Lavi feels dread completely envelopes himself, those were the same words they have told him as they tortured him limb by limb and they were right, no one came. He died alone, no one ever reached for him. He's hope were in vain, even the last strand was taken away from him.

"They won't come." The whisper feels so close to him it makes him shudder. "You are nothing to them, you are a Bookman they know you don't care, so why would they care for you?"

"And even the only thing that could have saved you, betrayed you." The voice brings him back to his senses, he lift his gaze to the Noah. "And now it’s still wants you dead."

Lavi remembers the incident earlier. "Innocence." Lavi mumbles in his broken voice. A sharp pang hits him in his chest. He feels heat coming from his core and it’s tremendously heavy, he had been ignoring it the whole time since he started fighting the Noah but the pain shoots to its peak making him to scream and close his eyes. He is losing control, he could feel it fading, he wants to fight it, to hold on something to keep him from falling, but nobody helps him until everything goes black.

~~~~~

A cheerful tune can be heard around the living room of the mansion. In the large sitting room a rotund man is happily humming as he puts sugar on his cup of tea. He is sitting on a small table set enjoying the heat from the cracking flames in the fireplace. The candles and lamp stand illuminates the room. The Earl of Millennium has his never fading grin plastered on his face, but the blush on his cheeks reveals a deeper jest in his feature. He drops the last sugar cube as he continues his humming. After stirring it carefully with a too small teaspoon for his large hands, he lays back on his chair to sip on his tea.

"MILLENIE!!" A high pitch familiar voice shouts behind him as a pair of arms wraps around his shoulders. The surprise is good enough for him to splutter a mouth full tea out of his mouth.

"Road, you almost had me a heart attack.~" The Earl says turning to the little girl still clinging on his back giggling sweetly. The Noah of Dream is wearing a simple white dress with red ribbons laces at the end of her sleeves and skirt. Her smile is so innocent you can't imagine the wickedness behind the child's personality.

"Nee, you seem so cheerful today?" The girls says as she swiftly flop herself on the chair next to the large man. The Earl smiled even wider at the girl’s comment.

"Oh Ho~ Am I that obvious?" He shyly says in his flamboyant tone, caressing his cheek with his hands. "I can feel him."

"Him?" Road ask a little bit confused. "You see Dark Matter is made partly from the creator's soul. That is why I could feel him." The girl's face lightens at the explanation as she understands the man's words. "Junior." She states with a malicious smile, her golden eyes glints with excitement. "Yes,Yes.." The Earl adds with a nod. "He sank deeper, soon he won't be able to rise from that pit, and everything will go as planned." His features turn to its grotesque form full of contempt and hostility.

~~~~~

Kanda stiffens as he heard a familiar voice screaming ahead of them before he dashes and pierce through the cloud of snow with Mugen unsheathed in his hands. He curses internally at the sight of the view. Many people are lying dead on the ground surrounded by burnt houses. And what makes him curse out loud is when he sees the redhead's state. The boy he was supposed to protect is impaled by a spear on the ground; he is barely standing and screaming with pain as he clutches his chest. The inverted star on his forehead is glowing with purple light, and his eyes are damped with black liquid that runs down his cheeks.

"Lavi!" Lenalee screams from the back with Allen on her side. The white haired Exorcist quickly darts forward to help Lavi but before he could get near his friend a whip shoots to him. He dodges and leaps backward to find his attacker to be the Noah of Lust.

"Lulubell!" Allen hisses in rage. "What did you do to him?"

"I won't let you interfere again Allen Walker." Lust snarls back to the Exorcist, her feature twists to a demon like expression. Her eyes and canine shines from the small amount of light in the night. She attacks Allen without hesitation rushing forward as her whip changed to a lance aiming to pierce the Exorcist. Allen draws his Sword of Exorcism in an instant deflecting the edge of the enemy's weapon as they lock with each other’s force.

"I will stop you!" The British teen shouts giving his all to push back the Noah. He succeeds at first but Lulubell just draws back to lunge her next attack. The woman swipes her bare clawed fingers at him; his blade is prepared to shield himself but the impact he received blows him to the ground. It takes him a moment to grasp the situation out of shock. A warm air passes him, focusing his eyes he sees a large dragon over him; a woman's face is embedded on its forehead. He is laying on the snow as the dragon pins him down with its talons. "He is ours!" The dragon speaks in a thundering growl.

Lavi grunts and stops from screaming, he struggles and step forward forcing the lance out of the deep snow. He falls on his knees with a rough growl, his body stills from the pain. His trembling fingers slowly reach the lance sticking above his shoulder and snap it with his wavering strength. Lenalee quickly flies towards Lavi with the aid of her Dark Boots towards him. "Lavi.." Her voice cracks in hesitation stopping a few steps away from the boy. She has never seen Lavi so broken, the boy's eyes are still black, face wrinkled with pain and he heaves in unnatural way.

Before Lenalee could decide what to do, Lavi pulled the lance out of his chest with an unnerving scream. The redhead covered with Akuma blood fall face first on the stained snow. Kanda just watches intently at Lavi as he stands beside the frozen Lenalee. He couldn't take off his eyes from his friend's defeated form. He know that Allen is fighting the Noah that did this to the redhead, he is also itching to tear off the nasty head of that Noah but first comes first Lavi needs help, Allen can fend for himself and he could kill the Noah later.

Kanda walk pass the female Exorcist and crouches at Lavi's side. "Oi.. Lavi." He tries to sound friendly though it doesn't come as how he wanted. Lavi is still alive, the movement of his back shows his struggle to breath, his eyes are pitch black, hands crawls on the snow like he's blind and the glow on his forehead burns weakly. The boy doesn't react to him and continues to crawl forward. "Lavi!" Kanda shakes the boy's shoulder firmly. He gets the redhead's attention, which frowns at him. "Yu.." He finally said. "You’re safe." Kanda says sternly. Lavi just stares at him, as Lenalee finally come closer. "We're here, we will save you." Tears fall from her eyes as she speaks. If they have to kill Lavi now just to save his soul Lenalee could bear with it though she can't endure the sadness growing on her chest.

Lavi's feature softens as he looks up at Lenalee. He lowers his gaze down to the snow but a green light suddenly holds his gaze. Painful memories flashes in his head as the deafening whistle rings again in his head. He feels like being torn apart, it’s pulling him out.  _ 'And now it still wants you dead.' _ Lulubell's word comes back to him like a nightmare.

Lavi's eyes and inverted star suddenly glows brightly. Kanda and Lenalee feels the power of Dark Matter in his body, it pushes them back as the snow swirl around the Akuma. The power sends them further until a blast of Dark Matter flashes all around them.

"It's done." Lulubell sneers at the white haired Exorcist. 

 


	24. Chapter 24

 

 

Allen uses the flash of purple light to get out of the Noah's grasps. Changing his Innocence from Sword of Exorcism to Clown Edge he cut through the dragon's fingers and lands another swipe across the dragon's face, Lulubell screeches and draw back from the Exorcist. 

"What happened to Lavi!" The teen Exorcist snarls to his opponent gaining his footing on the snow. "I didn't do anything to him, he acted on his own! He is an Akuma and you know he'll continue to evolve!" 

 

Allen grits harder and swallows the lump forming in his throat. "No.." His head turns to where he last seen the redhead as he realizes what his friend had become. "Lavi!" Before he could move, Lulubell flies above him in her dragon form towards the said Akuma. 

 

~~~~~

 

Lenalee brushes the snow covering her body as she scrambles back to where Lavi is. Her eyes are red and swollen from crying searching around her surroundings. She wasn't sure what had happened to Lavi, if he had exploded or something, she didn't know. Did they fail to save him again? It frightens her of how hurt Lavi's feelings would be.

The blizzard had stopped and the veil of snowy mist shades her vision. It seems like the snowflakes are suspended in the air that could only be moved by another force. It’s like walking in the cloud where everything is white. Then the silence strikes her, the calmness of the wind scares her, it’s like nothing horrible had happened in this place which sets alarm in her mind. Lenalee nearly jumps as a hand falls on her shoulder and spins her around. "Come with me." Kanda grunts and taps her back to follow him. She tries to gain her composure as she trails behind the swordsman. 

 

She needs to be strong for her friends and family, and at least for those who are still alive. Clenching her fist, she wipes the remaining tears on her eyes. She focuses on Kanda's back and the swaying of his dark blue hair to distract her. The Japanese suddenly halts raising his right hand to stop Lenalee in a protective manner. Lenalee pushes forward to see what caught Kanda's attention.

A crescent shell is resting in the middle of the snow field in front of them. The surface of the shell has fissures. Flakes of Dark Matter energy still floats around it as it dissolves in thin air. Inside the shell a figure stands and turns to them.

 

"Lavi." Lenalee gasps, her eyes widen as she stares at the white figure. It is wearing a medieval armor made of metal; clusters of silver white scales covered its whole body. The helmet protecting its head has a pair of small horns while the design of the pattern carved in the forehead resembles of a skull of a snake only showing the lower half of its face. The figure is taller than Lavi's child body but the single left green eye gives the impression that it is really him; the person that once had been a Bookman apprentice, an Exorcist, their beloved friend and now is an Akuma.

  
  


"He evolved..." Kanda trails off, trying to understand the situation. He is the one responsible for Lavi, the orders to him were to monitor the Akuma's loyalty to the Church of the Black Order and to implement execution if he shows any sign of betrayal and incapacity to serve the Church. Nobody knows that Kanda had vowed to protect him from any harm since the Noah of Pleasure told him that they need Lavi in their plans.

 

It was quite the opposite how he should have reacted; he should have told the Church about Tyki's revelation to counter their plans. Lavi should have been executed long ago. But he chose to take the responsibility on his own; he can't let anyone to stop Lavi from choosing what he wanted to do with his borrowed life. It's the only thing he could do to make it even from not being able to save him. And he will stick to his decision no matter what happened.

 

"Human.." The low but rasps voice snaps Kanda from his thoughts. The Level 3 Akuma is standing facing them. Its white armor could easily blend in the snow, except for the pale golden pattern placed on the scales. 

 

"How could this happened Kanda? Did he kill those people?" Lenalee shudders as she speaks looking at the Japanese Exorcist. They both know that killing human is the only way for an Akuma to evolve and Lavi no doubt did it to become a Level 2. 

 

"No he didn't" A mix of a growl and a human voice resound from above them, as the wind hurls to all direction dispersing the mist of snow and reveals an ashen dragon with a streak of gold that gracefully lands behind Lavi. "He refused my order, but from now on he'll be doing that without hesitation." The dragon continues as she morphs back to her human form. 

 

"Lenalee, Kanda! How is he?" Allen falls on Kanda's side using his Innocence, his gaze to his friend. His cursed eye activates at the sight of the Akuma. With furrowed brows he peers at Lavi's soul.  The soul is still intact but severely damaged. He couldn't recognize his friend's old appearance from it. The physical form is all gone, it is all tattered from head to toe and the chains that coiled around it had become thicker. It hurts Allen to see this, for the second time Lavi is dying. 

"But how did he evolve?" The samurai asks more to himself that anyone.

"Have you forgotten? Alma Karma suffered the same faith." Lulubell directs to him. "He turned into Akuma from hatred and sorrow and the same goes for this boy; the Dark Matter turns his misery into power." 

The three Exorcist freezes at what they've heard. They are losing him again. 

"All his hope was taken from him, his dream, life, his friends and even the last thing he clings into for help, to save him. He was betrayed by his own Innocence." The Lulubell says lastly. 

"Why are you doing this?" Allen shouts raging with hate to the cause of his friend's suffering. "Why don't you just stop messing with him?" The Noah giggles sadistically her golden eyes shimmers with lust. "It's the Earl's orders and I can't resist playing with the boy." Kanda grits his teeth at the mention of the Earl. "It's sad, but I have to go I've done my purpose here." She turns around ready to leave but spare a glance back to the Exorcists specifically to Kanda. "Oh and take care of Lavi or should I say he'll take care of you." She says lastly as she vanish in the wind. The Noah's final word brought them back to Lavi's state.

  
  


"Human should be destroyed." The Akuma starts in a flat tone; he lifts his right hand and aims to the three Exorcist as a ball of Dark Matter energy forms in its palm. In a blink of an eye the ball shatters and become several twelve inches long blades that fly to stab the Exorcists.

The blades are all deflected and blocked at the same time by the group. Kanda swiftly cut it with Mugen, Lenalee just flies to the air to dodges while Allen covers himself by his Cloak made of Innocence. But Lavi's hand stays in the air all that time, his fingers are firmly splayed before he clenches it into a fist, as if a command all deflected and shattered blade routes back to their targets giving the Exorcist no time to let their guard down. 

 

The blades move fluently in the air like it has homing device to track their target. Kanda had cut those blades aiming for him that just doubled his problem. Now he has to deal with six blades instead of three. It doesn't bother him much though, amplifying his Innocence synchronization he easily destroys the blades using his sword leaving not a single trace of it. 

 

The sword wielding Exorcist doesn't think twice and darts forward to the white Akuma. His sword meets the Akuma's gauntlet covered in harden scale to shield the attack. Kanda clenches his teeth as he adds force to his blade cutting deep into Lavi's arms crossed above his head. "Oi! Lavi! Wake up you stupid rabbit!" He snarls with bitterness. "Wake up or I'll fucking kill you!"  But Lavi just tilts his head to the side like a bird in curiosity. "Who are you?"  The demon said monotonously as it pushes Kanda's sword using only its right forearm. Its left hand threatening to lunge an attack, Kanda quickly slides back to make distance but his effort is in vain as pain suddenly surge though his right rib cage.

 

A Bo staff pounces him to his side sending him across the snow field; he could swear he heard his rib creaks at the impact. Lifting his gaze in an instant he sees Lavi swinging down his weapon towards him. Kanda barely dodges as he roll on the snow, it’s the only time he had realize that the Bo was made of Dark Matter same as the blades earlier. "Die!' It swings another blow but the blue haired Exorcist catches it with Mugen. "Stop this shit rabbit!" Kanda snarls. 

 

But the Akuma didn't have time to react as a white long material wraps around its arms holding the weapon that turns out to be Allen's Crown Belt. The younger Exorcist pulls him away from Kanda to the air and slams him to the ground. The snow splatters along with rocks, showing how deep he got buried under the snow.  "Lavi!" Allen calls after him. 

 

On the other hand Lenalee just finished off the last blade that tracks her with a powerful kick as she glides above in the sky. Her hair hurls in the wind as she maneuver to her friends direction. But before she could touch the ground Lavi suddenly burst out of the ground and tackles her hard to the brimming rocks near the mountain side. "I'll kill you all!" The Akuma yells as they fall. Despite being surprised Lenalee still managed to knee Lavi's  jaw to separate herself from the deadly demon. 

 

They both land on foot ready to attack each other. Lavi shrugs the hit from the female Exorcist while Lenalee bites on her cheeks in frustration. She still wants to save Lavi.

 

"You're not this Lavi! I know you're still there please fight it!" She screams desperately though it only passes through deaf ears. "Lavi! Lavi! Lavi! Who the hell is that prick you all have been blabbing about?" The Akuma scream in annoyance holding its left temples with his hand. He is trembling, the hand clutching his head twitches trying to suppress an emotion whether frustration or excitement Lenalee couldn't tell.  "All I want to do is kill someone! I need blood!" It darkly continues; a menacing smile tugs on its face. "Could you just please die for me?" He says with a pleading tone as it steps forward. 

 

Stretching its right arm at his side, the Bo staff suddenly forms out of Dark Matter energy in its hand. Lenalee tenses for a bit she can feel the wave of energy coming from the demon. She tries to step backwards but couldn't. She glances on her feet commanding them to move but nothing happens, she is petrified. Lavi moves closer as the second counts. "I..can't m-move." Lenalee stammers pushing her body to move with no avail, she is under the Akuma's spell. 

 

A few meters away from Lenalee, The Akuma suddenly leaps to swat the female Exorcist. It gives a forceful swing to Lenalee only to be stopped by two teenage Exorcists. The demon blinks twice as the two suddenly appears in front of it; both are wearing a stern face as they kick it on its chest at the same time. The Akuma skids and rolls to the snow hitting a large rock spitting it in two.

 

"Lenalee, Are you alright." Allen asks without looking back to his friend.

 

" Yes." She says moving her body. Allen and Kanda have their swords in their hands but they didn't use them to save Lenalee. They could end Lavi if they really intend it but they're restraining themselves giving their redhead friend time to come back.

 

A frantic growl is heard from the torn rock where the white Akuma landed. "Why won't you just let me!!" It screeches still sitting on the rubbles of rock and snow. A small yelp gets its attention to its side. The Akuma smirks and grins looking at the few tribe's people huddling just a few paces beside it. They might have been hiding in there since the fight between him and the Exorcist started. The Demon stands and reaches them.

 

The older people starts running to hide in terror but a girl of about 10 years old stands petrified on her spot directly looking at the approaching demon. Her eyes are wide and panic overrides her senses, she is about to cry when the Akuma get hold of her throat.

"Finally.." 

The girl gasps at the last moment involuntarily, filling her lungs with air that she won’t need as corpse.

   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry for the cliff hanger. It has been my way of ending a chapter and I wish you guys are getting used to it. :D Thank you for reading and reviews are very much appreciated.


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